


Jason Grace Doesn't bottom

by Irrelevantrelevancy



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, Eventual Smut, Everyone Needs A Hug, Everyone is bad at expressing their feelings, F/M, Fictional timeline, Fluff, I practically raised this fic, M/M, Some good ol Jercy for ya, Somewhat Pining, The Fates - Freeform, The gods make some cameos, These idiots love swearing on styx, This feels like sending your child off to college, but like, fresh out the oven and full of ANGST, lots of friendly banter, slowburn, smut with feelings, teenage bois working through feelings, two idiots in love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-20
Updated: 2020-01-20
Packaged: 2021-02-27 08:21:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 33,602
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22340215
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Irrelevantrelevancy/pseuds/Irrelevantrelevancy
Summary: “You think the gods are meddling again?”Percy asked.“Isn’t that what they do best?”He replied.
Relationships: Annabeth Chase/Percy Jackson(past), Jason Grace/Percy Jackson, Jason Grace/Piper McLean(Past), Nico di Angelo/Will Solace, Percy Jackson/Leo Valdez(mentioned)
Comments: 13
Kudos: 202





	Jason Grace Doesn't bottom

Jason Grace was stubborn. Everyone knew it, even his absent father knew this. It was a solemnly known fact amongst his friends and the few lovers that he’s had, but Jason didn’t have time for lovers either. After the war and their time on the Argo him and Piper had decided to split on mutual terms. She claimed that she would always love him but the thought of their love being anything but free will didn’t sit right with her, honestly it didn’t with him either. Although on mutual terms it still struck him deep to the core, but he was a soldier and a praetor for Jupiter's sake, he didn’t have time to be heartbroken. He took the downfall of their relationship in stride and carried on with his duties trying to keep it far in the back of his mind. 

Jason Grace also had quite the poker face. Though he was kind at heart, truly he was, he was a hard person to read. In the weeks following the break up Hazel,Frank _and_ Reyna had kept an eye on him but...he seemed fine. He spoke freely to Piper and had even managed to crack a smile ever so often, yes back at camp Jupiter Jason was _fine_ . He decided to take his leave to camp half-blood a few weeks early, it wasn’t _unusual_ but still his friends prodded.

“I just want to know what’s the rush”Reyna said with a shrug, “Your campers won’t be there for another _month_ ”

“I know”Jason said evenly, “I’ve just got some business to take care of”

“Business?”Reyna said quirking a brow, “what business?”

“I got a text message, Nico wanted me to come train some year rounders”He said, the lie slipping easily between his teeth.

“Why couldn’t he just ask Percy?”She said with folded arms.

“Why are you asking me so many questions?”He asked folding his in return. 

She set her jaw and so did he, the two stared desperately trying to make the other back down. Normally Jason would relent but he was irritated and wouldn’t give her the satisfaction of winning.

“I have my duties over at camp half-blood the same way I have my duties here”He said cooly, “If you’ll excuse me I'll be getting back to my cohort”

He slid out of his seat and pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose, he hated the damn things.

“What is wrong”She demanded in a growl, “You’re showing cowardice, the Jason I know does not-”

A flair of anger rose in his chest but thank the gods he had enough strength to turn on his heels and practically soared in the opposite direction. He had only been inside for a few hours before there was a knocking on the door. The same anger that was extinguished rose again but he took a deep breath and threw the door open.

“Reyna I really do-Oh…”He said looking at the dark haired boy before him, “Nico? How did you get here?”

“I walked”Nico said and once he gauged the look on Jason's face he simply rolled his eyes and let himself in, “Don’t be foolish Jason, I shadow traveled”

 _Foolish_.

The blonde took a deep breath and rubbed his face. “Man I really wish people would stop taking digs at me today”

“What was that?”Nico said making himself comfortable, “Also, where is everyone? This place is almost never empty”

“Playing gladiator or some other shit”He said waving a hand, “I don’t really know”

“Jason Grace? Not keeping an iron fist on his little soldiers?”Nico scoffed, “Wow”

“What is that supposed to mean?”The blonde said with narrowed eyes.

“Oh nothing”Nico said, “Just that we recently fought in a war-”

“Nico-”

“And that you could possibly relax-”

“Nico _Please_ ”He said, “I know you didn’t shadow travel all the way from New York just to tell me to relax. What do you want?”

“Touchy today”Nico said with a raised brow, “But I don’t know, you tell me. I received word from Hazel that you were coming early? On my request?”

“Um...yes?”He said weakly.

“Most importantly you said you received a text message saying we needed your help”Nico said, “Which is unbelievable for two reasons, do you care to hear them?”

“You’re going to tell me anyway”he muttered.

“We haven’t spoken since christmas and I don’t have a phone anymore”Nico said.

“W-what?”He said and bit his lower lip in aggravation, great now he was stuttering.

“Yeah, dropped it in the toilet and the Hephaestus cabin refused to build me another one”Nico said.

“Wait why?”He asked tilting his head.

“That’s not important.”Nico said, just like that things flipped. The slightly joking twinkle in his eyes was dismissed for the usual black fire. His smirk was gone and his lips were pulled so tightly it looked like a thin line across his face. “Next time you lie to Reyna keep my name out of it, got it?”

“Nico it wasn’t like that-”

“Then how was it like?”Nico snapped, “You know how Reyna gets when she’s moody-”

“Yes I know Nico but please-”

“And of all people I count on for their honesty I thought you would have fessed up the moment I got here. I hate liars...you of all people should know this Jason”The dark haired boy had practically spat the name. Hell hath no fury quite like it but a pissed off Nico Di Angelo. Before Jason could try and sputter out another half-assed apology the room was submerged into darkness and Nico was gone. Jason blinked at the wall before him, once than twice before flopping back onto the bed. He wanted to scream, he gripped his hair and groaned loudly before rolling over onto his face. A telltale crack was heard and his blood ran cold. His fucking glasses. This normally isn't a big deal, as a demigod he went through glasses like crazy but this was the breaking point. He threw the remains as far away from him as possible and curled up into a ball.

He was foolish, he acted in cowardice and now he couldn’t even keep his own glasses from breaking.

 _Just like my relationship_ he thought bitterly. He laughed and brought a hand to his cheek wiping away the tears but as soon as they came, they stopped. He wouldn’t let himself cry, he had far better things to do than cry. Bracing himself, he rolled back onto his feet and dabbed his eyes dry with the collar of his shirt. Out of sight out of mind, almost as if it had never happened before.

“Get it together Jason, you’re better than this”He mumbled rubbing at his face. In a few minutes he would be fine, he just needed a few minutes. His legs felt like jello and he allowed himself to plop back onto his breath trying to take deep breaths. He was better than this, he just needed a few minutes and he would be fine. He would only take a few minutes and he would be fine, he always was.

 _Maybe I am a coward_ he thought. He had never thought himself cowardice, he actually thought he was pretty brave. He fought in a war, he’s been on countless quests, he’s the son of jupiter-

 _But you lied to Reyna_ the voice butted in, _and Nico._

He did, and gods he lied to Nico of all people. They had bonded during this quest and to think of it all going down the drain made him feel physically sick. He just didn’t want them to worry, they had better and more important things to worry about. Feelings were a waste of time, pity was a waste of time and not something he wanted. He didn’t need their pity or their sympathy about a break up, he may be human but damn it he was also a god, he didn’t need to be bothered by these things. Looking up at the sky he let out a dark chuckle, his father would be so proud to see what his son had become. Sitting in his bed letting meaningless thoughts get to him when he could be out there training, another war could always be on the horizon and he had to be ready.

His few minutes were up.

Cautiously wiping his eyes again he waited until he felt like he could stand. Once he did, he quickly left not even giving a second glance back, he had to be ready.

-

“What do you think is wrong with him?”Hazel fretted running a hand through her curls, anxious habit. Nico frowned and grabbed her hand.

“I don’t know but he’s being an asshole, and he lied”He said gruffly.

“Maybe it’s because he’s scared?”she suggested but Nico scoffed.

“ _Scared_?”He huffed, “I don’t think that’s the right word. I’ve never seen Jason scared, and scared of what?”

“I dunno”Hazel sighed, “It’s just...he’s off for some reason”

“He’s always off”He waved off, “I just think he’s angry at something, maybe lost a camp game”

“Jason wouldn’t storm off over losing a camp game”Hazel scoffed rolling her eyes, “You’re thinking of Percy”

“They’re both similar”He said.

“Not even in the slightest”Hazel said shaking her head, “No no Percy is arrogant and childish but he’s loyal and fair”

“Sounds like you just described Jason”He said playing with his straw.

“Jason has a few of those qualities but he’s not loyal to the point of no return”Hazel said, “Jason is also a natural born leader, no one had to make him one, he just is”

“You speak about this guy like he’s always such a walk in the park”He snorted, “You seemed to forget him on the battlefield his mercy is lacking”

“He’s not always like that”Hazel defended quickly.

“I think we both know he is”He said narrowing his eyes, “He may be loyal but catch him in the wrong mood you’re in for it, battlefield and sparring”

“Nico…?”Hazel breathed eyeing him with slight concern.

“Don’t get me wrong, he is my friend and I... _care_ about him”He said cringing over the words. “I can’t really blame him, as a roman it’s in his blood. If he’s not thinking straight...he fights to kill”

“How can we fix that?”Hazel said frowning, “I want to help him-it doesn’t have to be like this!”

“ I know Hazel but _we_ can’t do much”He shrugged, “But someone his own size and strength should be able to knock the fight right out of him”

“Percy?”Hazel suggested.

“Percy”He nodded. 

-

Back at camp half-blood things were running far smoother. Although everyone felt saturated in chaos it was a good chaos, the campers would be coming in a month. The bunks that were left abandoned during the school year were being thoroughly updated by the hephaestus cabin. The usual protocols ensued, the now busted locks were replaced and upgraded, all being overseen by Leo...well it was supposed to be Leo. Will had convinced one of the Aphrodite girls to oversee the work while he was holed up in the infirmary.

“I don’t understand how you always manage to do this”The blonde muttered wrapping an ace bandage around the brunets arm.

“Well maybe if they didn’t stop changing the damn wall we wouldn’t have a problem”He huffed.

“It’s to better you as a warrior”Will chuckled good naturedly but Leo didn’t seem in the mood to joke. He just wanted to get back to his cabin so he could call out the mess he _knew_ they were making.

“You’re almost done”Will said with sympathetic eyes, “And honestly you should rest up for a few days, you know your quest wasn’t too long ag-”

“There’s never any rest for a demigod”He snorted, shaking his head, “I’ll rest in Elysium”

“Nico says the same thing”Will sighed, “It wouldn’t kill you to sleep for an hour or two”

“It might not kill _me_ but who knows who might get dealt the short end of that stick”He said, a fire blazing behind his brown eyes. Running a hand through his hair he took a deep breath and cracked a smile. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to get so serious”

“Don’t be sorry”Will waved off, “That’s sadly just the way things are”

“Well how are things with you and Nico?”He supplied trying to make conversation, “I see that you two have gotten closer”

Will felt a proud smile stretch across his face, they had. Without Percy or Annabeth here to buffer the two had grown extremely close. Even the thought of the black eyed boy filled him with joy to the point of beaming, literally.

“Will”Leo snickered covering his mouth with his free hand, “You’re glowing buddy”

“Y-yeah well he makes me happy-”

“No you’re literally glowing”Leo said now laughing outwardly, “you’ve got it bad for death boy, worse than I thought”

“I’ve always had my eye on Nico”He said with an embarrassed blush, “Since the moment he got here I wanted to be his friend, I wanted to know him. I remember being so childish and praying to my father to somehow work some magic and get him to talk to me…”

“And now that he’s talking to you? And even hugging you”Leo said with a smirk, “How does it make you feel?”

“It’s better than I can even imagine”He said with a dreamy sigh, “Also don’t let him know you saw that hug. We’ll both wake up in the underworld getting beat by skeletons”

“Oh gods the skeletons!”Leo cackled wiping his eyes, “Does he still do that? _Please_ tell me still does that!”

“Only when he feels threatened”He defended with a huff, “You’re done, get the hell out of my infirmary”

“Fine fine”Leo said hopping off the table, “Also before I leave”

“Hmm?”He hummed, his back already turned to tidy up his station.

“Give Nico a kiss for me, with his dreamy jet black eyes”

“Get out!”Will shouted, his cry was far to short and Leo was already sprinting out of the station. The blonde shook his head and continued fixing the tools.

“They’re not jet black, they’re obsidian”

-

It was well after dark before Nico returned to Jason’s bunker, he cursed under his breath. _Bring some ambrosia_ Will’s scolding voice said, _you’ll regret it_ . When he left camp half-blood he had felt indestructible. _I’m older now_ , he said, _stop worrying about me_ . He frowned as the harsh tone resonated through his head, he regretted not bringing the ambrosia. He regretted speaking to Will like that. He sighed and shook his head, there was nothing much he could do about it now. He knocked on the door and bit his lower lip trying to fight the anger bubbling inside of him, he was trying to be better. _But he lied_ , the voice in his head reasoned, _why should you forgive him_? But this wasn’t about forgiveness, at least not right now. This was about putting his anger aside and trying to help his friend. Whether he liked it or not Jason had done quite a lot for him and been an ear to listen, the least he could do was pay him back for that.

When there was no answer he knocked again. A gust of wind blew across his back and he whirled around to see Jason. He wasn’t wearing his glasses and his usually pristine purple robe was smudged with dark stains, looking up Nico could see the white shirt he wore underneath colored in a least favorable shade.

“What are you still doing here?”Jason panted and squinted. If Nico didn’t know any better that the boy was near blind he would have taken that as a fight.

“What were _you_ doing?”Nico said narrowing his eyes, “You’re covered in blood and--”

He reached out and prodded Jason’s stomach eliciting a groan.

“--and hurt”He finished biting back a snarl.

“Yeah?”The blonde said, “So what? People get hurt”

“ _People_ get hurt”Nico insisted, “Not you, you’re smarter than that. You were acting recklessly! Jason you’re a better fighter than this, especially seeing as it was an easily dodgeable cosmetic scratch”

“I was off today”He amended setting his jaw.

“You’re usually off”Nico said shaking his head, “But you’re never off like this, you don’t even have your glasses! It was foolish of you Jason to pick a fight without being able to see”

“Yeah yeah I fucking know!”The blonde exploded, “There seems to be a growing list today, I’m a coward,I’m foolish,I’m a liar and I’m _weak_ ”

“No one said you were weak”Nico hissed crossing his arms.

“No but it’s what you’re all thinking isn’t huh?”He said, “Don’t even answer that, I already know”

“Jason-”

“Look this was a lovely talk Nico but please go away”The blonde said. The wind around them began to pick up and leaves swirled violently around the shaking boy. He bit back a sob and narrowed his eyes at the ground, he was angry he had to be _angry_.

“Jason you need to calm down”Nico said taking a step forward.

“No!”He shouted and took a step back. The sky grew dark as storm clouds closed in and rain hit the grounds of camp jupiter. There was a distant sound of a trumpet and the ground rumbled with the feet of hundreds of campers and staff trying to take shelter. He should feel ashamed for causing such a fuss but he couldn’t help it. He tried to control it but everytime he took the wheel of his thoughts they spiralled out of control. _Liar. Coward. Foolish. Weak_. He had to prove himself, he had to prove that he wasn’t weak, he was a soldier, he was-

“Jason!”Nico shouted, but he sounded so far away. Jason looked down and through the frenzy of the storm he could barely see the ground, let alone where Nico’s voice was. He kicked his feet and nearly capsized, when did he start floating? He would fall if he panicked so he took a deep breath and tried to calm down, but anger was okay, it was welcome. He couldn’t be a good fighter without anger.

“Jason please!”Nico shouted, “You know I don’t beg so level with me!”

“Why should I!”He shouted back with a shaky tone, “I’m just a coward!”

“You’re only a coward if you act like one!”The black haired boy shouted back. “Just stop the storm and we can fix this!”

“I can’t”Jason shouted, “I tried and I can’t!”

“Yes you can! You’re Jason Grace! One of the strongest leaders I know, just please stop the storm!”

Although Nico couldn’t see him, he nodded. He could stop the storm, he knew he could. Letting his mind draw a blank he closed his eyes and tried to think of the good things before the war, when things were good with Piper, when he was just Jason the counselor and not Jason the leader.

He didn’t want to be a leader.

His feet slowly hit the ground and he surely would have slipped if Nico wasn’t there to keep him steady. The clouds retreated back into their hiding and the rain slowed to a gentle patter against the ground. The blonde stared at him with wide eyes and felt the electricity slowly fade from his fingertips. He was worried that he’d somehow managed to shock the smaller boy in the few seconds they had been touching, but all of that worry melted away when Nico gently gripped his hand.

“Jason…”He said slowly. A flash of horror passed through his black eyes, but Jason saw. It was enough for him to drop his hand and take off running in the opposite direction. He hadn’t done much damage, only a few shaken leaves and a muddy ground, but the sheer thought of Nico being afraid made him physically ill. He didn’t want to be feared...or did he? He didn’t want to be feared by Nico, he didn’t want to be feared by any of his friends. He had stopped running just in time to barely avoid running into Reyna.

“Oh, my apologi- _Jason_ ”She said narrowing her eyes. He gulped and strongly considered flying away but from the look on her face, this action would leave them on worse terms.

-

“You have got a lot of explaining to do”She gestured throwing him into a chair. This couldn’t be happening. He looked around and saw Hazel,Frank,Nico and even Piper standing around him.

“What was that out there?”Reyna asked folding her arms, “One minute it was clear skies and the next I was being stampeded by tens of campers trying to take cover from a storm _you_ created!”

“I didn’t mean to”He said shaking his head.

“You didn’t mean to?”she asked, “Jason I thought you had gotten your powers under control years ago”

“I did-I do!”He floundered, “I just lost control of myself, I’m sorry to everyone who had to endure it. I’ll clean up whatever damage was done and I'm willing to take any punishment for causing such a fuss”

“What are you doing Jason?”Reyna sighed, “I for one accept your apology and luckily for you there isn’t much to clean besides upturned chairs”

“I accept his apology”Hazel said quietly, “You’re still human and mistakes still happen”

“I’ll think about it”Nico huffed.

“I wasn’t even upset in the first place”Frank shrugged and let out an oof when nudged by Hazel, “I mean yeah, I accept”

“I agree with Frank”Piper said, “We’re here for you”

 _Then why did you leave?_ He almost found himself saying. He instead gave a few nods and ran a hand over his face, he needed his damn glasses back.

“But it’s not like you’re completely off the hook”Reyna said with the ghost of a smirk on her face. “Turn over your robe”

“W-what?”Jason said feeling the color drain from his face. No, no she couldn’t do this, this was all he had-

“And go pack your bag”She continued, “You’ll be going over to camp half-blood tomorrow afternoon, after Nico regains his strength he will travel the two of you over there”

“Why can’t I keep my robe?”He asked defensively clutching onto the purple garment.

“Firstly because it’s scattered with blood”She pointed out, “Secondly as your friends we have come to the conclusion that you need time away from your praetor duties”

“To do _what_?”He asked scrunching up his face.

“That is completely up to you”She said, “But I think after this long day we all deserve some rest. Dinner should be ready shortly and after that I suggest it’s off to bed”

The group gave their murmurs of agreement and left leaving only Piper and Jason together.

“What really happened out there Jace?”She asked softly, “You know you can talk to me”

“It was nothing”He brushed off, “Just got a little angry after sparring and blew up”

“But Jason you haven’t done that in years”She said with a frown, “Is something bothering you?”

“It’s nothing pipes, honest”He said, “You should catch up with the rest of the group”

“Well what about you?”She said, “Reyna really did just give you the business”

“Yeah she really did lay it on me”He chuckled and just for a moment, everything was okay.

“Are you sure you’ll be fine?”She asked with a gentle smile.

“Of course pipes, I always am”He said and playfully punched her shoulder, “If the war didn’t get me, then Reyna’s words won’t either”

She seemed to believe him, he wished he could believe himself too.

-

The next morning, Jason was already up and packed before anyone was awake, including Apollo seeing as the sky was still dark. He didn’t want to say that he was excited to leave but perhaps he was a little antsy. He missed Camp half-blood and he missed New York, the way the cool grass felt under his feet in the morning and how there were always trips into the city for random things. Two summers before they had surprised the Apollo cabin by taking them to see a Broadway production, it was an unforgettable night. Him,Percy and Nico had left the kids to fight for the best seats while they sat up in the balcony. The trio had gotten split up between a couple with their children, ultimately they decided it was best if Percy sat with Nico because _someone_ had to keep him from shouting obscenities. Jason could barely pay attention to the show sparing glances at Percy to see just how thoroughly he was enjoying the show. Though it was dark he could see the sparkle he gets in his eyes when he gets excited, despite claiming that Broadway wasn’t his scene. Jason hadn’t even realized when the curtains closed on it’s final act.

They had walked around for a little bit trying to stretch their midnight curfew and pretty soon the Apollo cabin went wild.

“Will, Will _look_!”A little girl said tugging the tan boy’s hand, “That theatre is named after dad!”

“Yeah, it is”The boy smiled and ruffled her hair, “Hows about you go tell Austin?”

The young girl ran off and news spread to the group like wildfire. 

“Now that was cute”Percy said after a few beats.

“Yes he was”Nico mumbled eyeing the blonde. He thought no one had heard and flushed when Jason gave him a knowing smile.

“It’s nice that they still think their father is some hero”Jason said, “I wish I still thought like that”

“Me too”Percy said.

“Me too”Nico sighed.

Jason smiled wide at the memory and even found himself laughing. Some of his best memories just so happened to be at camp-blood, now he was definitely excited. He had to stop himself from whizzing out of the room and demanding Nico take him now. He couldn’t even do that if he had the option, him and Nico weren’t really on good terms right now. He had to fix that at some point, being on Nico’s bad side was not something you took lightly. But getting off his bad side wasn’t a simple task either, he had to stop lying because Nico would know, no one knows how but he’s good at picking them out. He had to come clean about how he was feeling, simple as that. Except it wasn’t so simple, he didn’t know how he was feeling, he just knew it was a lot and it was _wrong_.

He wasn’t supposed to feel this extremely, it could hinder his performance in battle. Feelings were best left in the back of his mind untouched for another day that would never come.

Well, until he had met Piper. She had seen right through him and focused in on his heart. It was a little twisted but always in the right place, and that’s all she cared about. It took him a while to open up, quite a while actually. But he couldn’t ignore the way he melted whenever she just so much had glanced at him. She made him forget that he was a soldier, a weapon in the gods games. She made him feel _human_ , like he was just Jason Grace and not the son of Jupiter or a praetor. She made him feel as happy as before he was claimed by his father and dragged into the gods everlasting mess. They were happy together. They swore on the river styx they would always be together, but he never checked behind her back and perhaps her fingers were crossed. But that was then and this is now, this was his reality. Their relationship had bit the dust and he couldn’t spend all day moping about it. He was going to camp half-blood and he was more than happy to forget about this, if even for a little while.

-

Jason looked down at the folded praetor robe in his arms and felt a sense of longing. Of course he didn’t wear it _all_ the time but he felt naked without it. Instead he donned a pair of blue jeans and a v neck shirt, usually clothes he wore when he was visiting the mortal world. He also wore a new pair of black rimmed glasses, a going away present from a vulcan camper. He frowned, he hoped him leaving wasn’t going to be a wide spread ordeal, he didn’t want the fuss.

“Are you done checking yourself out or can I have the robe?”Reyna said raising a brow.

“Will I ever get it back?”He found himself saying. She rolled her eyes and snatched the purple cloth from his grasp.

“Of course you will”She said, “Now grab your things, Nico is waiting”

And he was, directly outside the bunker. He looked different in broad daylight, a lot older. Maybe it was the constant stress of war or maybe he really wasn’t a kid anymore. His usual angler features were more chiseled and he had grown quite a bit, how had jason not noticed? He had to be at least a head taller than the last time they were together.

“You’ve grown”Jason said lamely.

“I have”Nico said raising a brow, “What’s it to you?”

“Nothing”Jason said shaking his head, “Was just making an observation”

Nico shot him a glare and mumbled something under his breath. 

_Definitely not on his good side_ , Jason thought. It was like they were back at square one. The blonde sighed and turned to Reyna.

“I guess this is goodbye”He said.

“I suppose it is”She nodded, “I’ll see you in the fall and you will continue your praetor duties full time from there”

“I wouldn’t want it any other way”He said cracking a smile.

“Also Jason”She said.

“Yeah?”He asked.

“Make sure to have fun, and say hi to Annabeth and Percy for me,”She said the corner of her mouth turning upwards in an attempt at a smile. This was hard on her, he hadn’t been out of her sight since they returned.  
“You have my word”He said with soft eyes. Both an answer to her spoken and unspoken requests.

“I told Percy i’d have you there soon,”Nico said gruffly, “Can we hurry this up?”

“Goodbye Nico”Reyna said with a real smile this time, “Make sure to say hi to _Will_ for me”

At the mention of the freckled boys name Nico cracked a smile as well and nodded his head dopily. Jason raised an eye and glanced between the two, was there something he was missing?

“Will?”He asked.

“None of your business”Nico snapped, Jason would have been offended if Nico hadn’t turned such an alarming shade of red. He was already on Nico’s bad side and he knew he shouldn’t push it but-

“Aww, death boy’s got a crush”He cooed. In an instant Nico’s sword was in his hand and pointed at Jason.

“I do not like you right now. Do not push your luck before I leave you stranded in the middle of the underworld”He said and frown the look in his eyes, he wasn’t joking. Jason looked to Reyna for help but she just shrugged and walked back inside.

“Now come on, I want you off my hands as soon as possible”He said, before Jason could protest Nico gripped his hand and they were off. It felt as though every molecule in his body was being ripped apart and sewn back with a side of nausea. He wasn’t sure how long they were in the hell vortex but he did black out at some point.

 _And you call yourself a demigod_ , Nico thought.

-

As soon as their feet hit solid ground Jason was tempted to kiss it. Nico wobbled a little bit but ultimately shook his head a few times with a grimace. Jason on the other hand keeled over and threw up what was left of his breakfast.

“Damn grace, it been that long since you shadow traveled?”A voice said teasingly.

“Percy?”Jason mumbled not even bothering to look up.

“That would be me”The green eyed boy said, “But seriously, do you need some ambrosia or anything?” His voice was unusually tender, Jason frowned. He had been here less than five minutes and he had already made himself into a charity case.

“No i’ll be fine, just need to sit down”He said steadying himself on his feet and wiping the corner of his mouth. Without a word Nico stomped off in the direction of the infirmary. Percy let out a low whistle and nudged Jason.

“What did you do to piss him off?”he asked.

“It’s a long story”Jason groaned.

“Is it long or do you not feel like telling it?”He asked.

“Last time I checked perceptiveness was not supposed to be one of your powers”Jason said.

“Only with you”He said bumping the blonde’s hip. Jason felt his face warm and stuffed his hands in his pocket.

“How are things with you and Annabeth?”Jason asked. Percy’s face hardened and he simply shook his head.

“That bad?”Jason asked.

“Talk about non-existent”He said with a dark chuckle, “After seeing what I did on the battlefield she decided it would be best if we didn’t date”

“What?”Jason said furrowing his brows, “I’m not following”

“I mean...you saw me out there man”He said with a shrug, “I wasn’t going to be the same after that, none of us were. She was…”

“She was what Percy?”Jason asked.

“She was scared that I was going to go darkside. I can’t blame her, I was a monster out there”He said shaking his head. Hearing those words come from Percy felt like an awakening and a slap in the face.

“You did what you needed to do”Jason said, “For all of us”

“Yes but I liked it!”He exclaimed running a hand through his hair, “That’s not normal, not even for a demigod”

“It’s twisted”Jason admitted, “But do you feel that way now?”

“Gods no”He said, “I-I could never feel that way again! It’s wrong and makes me feel sick to even think about it-”

“I feel that way”Jason said stopping the boy in his ranting.

“You what?”He asked.

“I enjoy fighting”Jason shrugged even though he was terrified on the inside, “I get a rush from it”

“A rush?”He asked, “I don’t think I'm following”

“I’m not going to get into details”Jason said with a shaky sigh, “But I just wanted to prove that we’re all a little twisted”

“Jason Grace you can not drop that bomb on me and not give me answers”He said folding in his arms, “Talk to me”

“I mean I just got here is now really the best time to-”

“ _Jason_ ”he all but growled, “You know I hate when you do that”

“Do what?”Jason said innocently.

“Avoid the question”He said, “And play dumb. Just talk to me man, it can’t be that bad”

“I like the pain”Jason mumbled with clenched fists, he couldn’t believe he was saying this. Not even Reyna knew this, nor Piper.

“Speak up”He said.

“I like the pain!”Jason snapped now red in the face and thoroughly embarrassed. This was not something that was meant to be shared, it was incredibly private and was now amazing blackmail material. All Percy did was smirk and the conversation was left there ultimately morphing into how nicely his cabin had gotten renovated. Jason was trying his best to listen but he couldn’t with all the blood still rushing to his ears. It shouldn’t be that embarrassing, he’s said and done worse just for shits and giggles.

“...and that’s why you’ll be staying with me until the campers get here”He finished.

“Why?”Jason asked dumbly.

“Because yours isn’t ready yet”He said with a duh expression, “Sometimes I wonder if you’re even listening”

“I just got a little distracted sorry”Jason said giving a small smile.

“By what? Was it my beautiful eyes?”He asked and proceeded to blink rapidly.

“In your dreams Jackson!”Jason laughed and shoved the brunet into a bush.

“I will smother you in your sleep!”He cried and quickly scrambled to get back up. “I don’t understand what’s so pleasurable about that, it hurts!”

“That’s the point”Jason muttered ignoring the burning in his cheeks, “Now aren’t you going to be a nice host and show me to my cabin?”

“You haven’t been a guest since the first day I met you”He scoffed, “You’ll be lucky if I let you sleep on the stairs”

Jason felt an odd shiver surge through him and he twitched slightly at the notion, what the fuck was wrong with him today?

“You seem to forget I can fly”Jason said, “I’d rather sleep in a tree than on your dirty stairs”

The two bantered for a while on the walk to Percy’s cabin and the weird feeling was soon forgotten. Word had gotten out pretty quickly that Jason was back and soon enough everyone was grappling for his attention.

“It’s good to have you back!”Lou Ellen said punching his shoulder, “you’re early though”

“It’s good to see you Lou”He said slinging his arm around her, “You guys know you can’t keep me away for long”

The group laughed and Jason was handing out hugs and cheek kisses like it was second nature. He didn’t know why but something about this place made him so touchy. In comparison to camp jupiter it was extremely laid back and he didn’t feel like he was constantly being watched, except for now. His eyes trailed back to Percy who was leaned against the cabin with his arms folded.

“I’ll see you all at dinner”He said with a grin. The group sounded back in agreement and soon dispersed back to their regular activities.

“I guess they really missed me”He said, “It’s been so long I didn’t think the littler ones would remember me”

“Remember you?”Percy scoffed, “You’re like a blonde Superman, of course they would remember you”

“Yeah right”He said, “don’t flatter me Percy you already know you’ve won my heart”

“Shut up Jason i’m serious”Percy said, “You’re like a superhero to them, one of the good guys”

“And what are you?”He asked.

“Aquaman”Percy deadpanned. It should have been obvious but Jason couldn’t help the howl that slid past his lips. Percy still looked unamused but Jason was laughing so hard that his glasses fogged up and he couldn’t breathe. Once the green eyed boy thought it died down it started right back up bouncing off the trees and into his ears in shrill screams.

“It’s not that funny”Percy said but he was smiling now too.

“No, no! It’s funny because it’s _true_!”He screamed and fell to his knees, “They really call you-”

“Yes jason the younger kids do call me aquaman”Percy sighed.

“Serious question, who’s batman?”He asked wiping his eyes. They looked at each other for a few moments.

“Nico”

-

Dinner came and passed, Jason Grace was once again the life of the party. Everyone wanted to sit next to him during the campfire, it made the blonde feel at peace to see both old and new faces. The Hephaestus cabin had a new camper who from the looks of it had been staying all year round, she was favored amongst most of the older counselors. She had been timid at first but it seems like anyone could warm right up to Jason’s personality. Nurturing wasn’t in his nature but it came easily to him at camp half-blood, it was what he wanted back at home anyways.

“It’s a little chilly out here, how about you take this”He said softly and pulled off his cabin 1 hoodie. The cold air prickled his skin but seeing her accept it made him feel warm and fuzzy, he chuckled as the fabric promptly drowned her. She frowned at him and he just smiled reaching over to tousle her hair.

“Don’t worry, you’ll grow into it one day”He promised and that seemed to quell her worries.

“Will I be big like you?”She asked, the innocence in her tone tugged at his heart in ways unimaginable. It had been years since he’s been around a kid her age in a relatively safe environment, she was probably no older than six.

“What’s your name?”He asked instead.

“I’m Andrea”She said, “What’s your name?”

“Jason”He said with a smile, “But my friends call me Jace”

“Does...does that mean we can be friends?”She asked rocking on her feet.

“Of course it does”He said with a laugh, “We’ll be best of friends”

“Really?”She asked showing a toothy grin.

“Really”He said nodding his head. The girl giggled and ran across the circle to one of the few Artemis counselors. He shook his head fondly, he wondered what she was doing here so early. Maybe the monsters had already started to come for her, but how was she claimed? She was far too young to have a claim on her. With all the thoughts swirling around his head he didn’t realize the familiar face sitting to his right, but could you blame him? Nico always tended to fade into the shadows, especially at night.

“What you did was...it was nice”He said gruffly.

“Yeah?”Jason said tilting his head, he had just spoken to her.

“It was nice that you treated her like a kid, most demigods don’t get that”He said looking across the campfire at the girl who was curled up in one of the counselors lap.

“I love kids”Jason admitted softly, “Even our little killing machines at camp jupiter”

Nico nodded along and patted the blonde’s shoulder. 

“Does it bother you?”He asked, “I mean the way the children ar-”

“Yes”Jason said sharply and trained his eyes on the floor. “It bothers me plenty”

“Well then-”

“I don’t think the campfire is a good place to discuss this”He said smoothing out his tone, but his eyes were pleading for Nico to let it rest. The black haired boy relented and the two sat in comfortable silence. 

It was almost scary how different Jason was at camp jupiter than here Nico pondered as the Apollo cabin sang theirs songs. It was like he was leading to very different lives, he couldn’t tell which one was the real Jason. At camp jupiter he was a natural force and could turn up storms from the mere sway of his emotions and send enough bolts of electricity through a person to fry them. But here, he was kind and soft spoken. Here he wasn’t a soldier, he was just Jason. Strict but fair Jason who always had time for a laugh, or to help a camper with their stance. He listened patiently and always thought out his advice before giving it. The black haired boy frowned, maybe he had been too hard on him. He was known for holding grudges, it was who he was. But even after the storm, even after the war, this was still Jason. The jason he went crying to when he had a crush on Percy and couldn’t even phathom the fact of being homosexual. The Jason who accepted him with open arms no matter how camp jupiter raised him. The Jason who always managed to make him feel included, the Jason who didn’t even know about Will when practically the entire camp did. He groaned and rubbed a hand over his face.

“You okay?”Jason asked eyeing him with concern. He nodded and cursed the gods, this was still his Jason arlight. But why did he lie? Zeus wasn’t known for his honesty but Jason tried to be as unlike his father as possible so what would compel him to stoop to his ways? Lying was dirty, it was wrong,- _It was self preserving_ his brain supplied. Nico could think of a dozen times he lied, but they were all for good reason! Maybe he wanted to surprise Piper and that’s why he lied about going early? Whenever the two would visit he would always try to come a few days early to plan a surprise with the Aphrodite cabin. Maybe that could be it?

“Jason?”He said with a sigh, “After campfire, can we talk in my cabin?”

The blonde’s eyes went wide but he nodded his head quickly.

“Of course”

With his mind at ease Nico could finally see Will serenading him along with the rest of his cabin. He grinned a cheesy grin and felt as light as the glowing freckles on the tanned boys face.

 _He was happy_ , Nico thought.

And that made him happy.

-

The walk back to Cabin 13 was just long enough to make Jason anxious, why did he want to talk? It’s not like he didn’t appreciate the effort but this was so unlike him. The thick silence was broken through by the distant squeal of the harpies on their patrol.

“I fucking hate those things”Nico grumbled and gripped Jason’s hand, “We’re shadowtraveling”

“No, we can just fly”Jason frowned, “I don’t want you overexerting yourself-”

“We’re going”

And with that they were off. A few seconds later they were in front of Cabin 13 and Jason was ready to keel over once again but tried to shake it off. He readjusted his glasses and gestured for Nico to lead the way.

“What did you want to talk about?”Jason asked once they were inside. Nico walked over to his bed made neatly in the corner and sat down. Jason stood awkwardly until Nico rolled his eyes and patted the spot next to him.

“I want to know why you lied”He said and instantly backtracked at the look of panic on the blonde’s face, “I’m not trying to ridicule you, I just want to understand”

The softness in his tone made the blonde all the more worried, he would rather get a lecture right now. Fleeing wasn’t an option and if he lied again he would end up serving eternity in the fields of punishment at Nico’s request.

“I didn’t want to…”Jason started off but frowned and shook his head, that wouldn’t do. “I wasn’t...I didn’t...I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

“Not all pain is intentional”He said, “But why did you do it Jason? Why would you do that?”

The dark haired boy took a deep breath and tried to remind himself that he wasn’t here to point fingers, he was here to make things right.

“I didn’t mean to say it like that”He sighed, “I just want to understand you”

“Nico I...you know I can’t”Jason said shaking his head even harder, “I want to, I want to tell you but I can’t”

“Why can’t you?”He pressed, “I know I may be older and taller but I am still Nico”

“A-As a soldier I can never let my guard down!”Jason exploded gesturing wildly. “I just can’t Nico! It’s all I've ever known, it’s all I will ever be!”

“Guarded or a soldier?”He asked.

“Both”Jason said, “It’s all I’m good at, I'm a leader and it would be detrimental to show weakness”

Nico’s face hardened and he couldn’t hide the rage that was building up inside of him. Jason has always been slightly aloof but now, he was hardly recognizable.

“What have they done to you?”He asked.

“They turned me into a solider-”

“They turned you into a machine!”He hissed and lunged forward gripping the blonde’s shoulders, “You may be a demigod but you are also human, you have emotions!”

“I know!”Jason said trying to move away.

“Jason look at me”He growled, “Look me in my eyes!”

“No!”Jason shouted finally shoving the dark haired boy off, “I’m the leader, I call the shots-”

“Jason”He warned.

“-Do you know how hard I fought for these privileges? For the five years there I was gladiator bait-”

“ _Jason_ ”He said more urgently watching the wind pick up around the room.

“-I am tired of being told what to do!”

In a gust of wind Nico was slammed against the wall of the cabin with a groan. The son of Jupiter's eyes glowed an icy blue and electricity buzzed at his fingertips. His chest heaved as his brain finally caught up to his actions, _he_ had done that. It felt as though he was in the middle of battle again, singling out the enemy and letting his powers consume him. Only the Fates know what would have happened if he didn’t catch himself.

“Jason”Nico wheezed looking up at him, “What the _fuck_ have they done to you?”

His resolve was breaking, he knew it, but he needed to be strong. He couldn’t show weakness, no. What if it was used against him one day? What if this was all some big ploy to kill him? Getting close enough to weed out his weak spots and then attack? What if-

“Was it that bad?”Nico asked cutting through his train of thought. The blonde stiffened his jaw and felt his eyes water slightly, he nodded.

“They would…”He started and bit his lip, it had happened a long time ago but the wounds were still so fresh, “I would get whipped into...into uh submission if I disobeyed. They preferred the older forms of discipline ...said it would make me stronger”

“I’m sorry”Nico said, “That was wrong”

“It helped me learn”He said, “Once the whip came down on me I would never forget what I had done wrong”

“You don’t have to share”Nico said softly, “If it um...if it hurts too much”

“I um, I think I actually need to”He said wiping the corners of his eyes with his tee shirt. “There was somethin Piper used to say that finally makes sense”

“What was it?”Nico asked.

“You can’t heal in the place that hurt you”he said and chuckled, “One of those cheesy pinterest healing typa quotes...gods does she love that stuff…”

There was a pause of silence before Jason continued. “I guess I um...never wanted to heal because I never thought there was anything wrong with me. The people my age, we’re all like this, every single one of us. Camp jupiter was practically a military camp before the new rulers took over, gods they ran the place like Sparta and we’re not even the Greeks…”

Nico chuckled at that and waited for him to continue.

“I dunno man I guess seeing Andrea today is making me realize that kids aren’t supposed to be warriors, no matter how powerful they are. She’s still getting cuddled in people’s laps while the kids back at camp are getting suited up for armor and sparring”He said shaking his head, “Makes me realize that even though it’s better it’s still _wrong_ , all of it is wrong”

“I’ve got all this anger inside of me and I just, I don’t know what to do with it!”He exclaimed, “I usually have it under control but after the war and the break up with Piper I’ve just been out of control! I hate being dramatic with a passion but I feel like I might kill someone Nico”

“Are you angry or are you sad?”Nico asked cautiously.

“What do you mean?”He asked tilting his head, he couldn’t recall ever feeling necessarily sad.

“Because it seems like you’re being a heartbroken teenager who’s hiding his pain by getting angry”Nico shrugged.

“How would you know that?”He scoffed.

“Because I was and still am you dumbass”Nico huffed, “I’m just trying to be better and-ugh sorry- _open_ about my _feelings_. I didn’t fight through my pain but I was bitter and held grudges and pushed the people that cared away. It took a very rude awakening for me to get my shit together”

“What happened?”He asked.

“Well we all know that I’m used to death,I’m surrounded by death,I even give off the aura of death”Nico said, “My mother passed and my sister passed but even though Bianca is still a sore spot I managed to grow numb and even make peace with the fact that it’s a natural part of life”

“Uh huh”He hummed.

“I pushed everyone away but you and Percy, even then I barely tolerated you two. I mean honestly you guys were annoying-”

“Get to the point”He said with a raised brow.

“I’m italian, I monologue. Sue me.”Nico shrugged, “Long story short Will Solace and I were on a quest together. He ate some berries, he got very sick and I was freaking out on the inside but I wouldn’t show it. Will was a different kind of annoying, one that I tolerated and even _liked_.”

“Remind me to speak to this Will Solace”he mumbled.

“I um...he was gone for a short period of time in the infirmary, I didn’t even speak to him”Nico said his face taking on a grave expression. “I was crushed, but again I wouldn’t show it. I pushed more people away and to make a long story short I ended up making a deal with my father-”

“Nico...”Jason whispered in awe.

“-A year in the fields of punishment for a chance to see Will again. I don’t know what I was thinking, but something about him rubbed me the right way-”

“Mm I bet he did”Jason grumbled and Nico narrowed his eyes.

“-anyways that’s why I disappeared from camp for a year. My father he um, he saw it as an act of sacrifice and granted Will his life back. From that moment on I was done with pushing people away until it got too late, I’ve witnessed people die on the battlefield and haven’t felt a thing because I wouldn’t let myself. I was getting in my own way the entire time when I thought it was everyone else plotting against me. That was a long story but I hope you get the message”he sighed and rubbed a hand over his face.

“How can I change when I've been so fucked for so long?”Jason asked.

“It’ll be uncomfortable and take lots of conscious effort”He said, “You will make mistakes but all you need to do is learn from them. No one is asking you to change who you are, we just want to see the real you instead of the one you put on for show”

“What if I fail?”Jason asked biting his lip.

“That’s your problem”He said, “This isn’t something you fail at. It’s not a test of strength or a battle, it’s your life”

“You gotta understand that this is weird”Jason chuckled.

“Been there, experienced that”He said with a smirk, “it’s going to be weird”

“Okay, this is...alright”Jason sighed. “This is a lot to process”

“Trust me, I know”He said, “I should get some rest, Will will be here at the crack of dawn to say good morning”

“Apollo kids are annoying”Jason said scrunching up his nose.

“Yet so endearing”He smiled. Jason settled in a bed across from Nico’s and stared at the ceiling. Maybe change could be good.

“Hey Nico?”

“Yeah?”

“Don’t think you’re getting away with having a boyfriend”

-

After the first day things seemed to roll by smoothly, but the few weeks following were a true test of Jason’s patience. Until the camp session proceeded he was still seen by all but Percy and Nico as a guest. This was the exact opposite of what he wanted, he came to camp half-blood to be out of the spotlight for a while, not be thrusted back into it. It was sweet on the first night but it seemed like he was no longer Jason Grace here either, he was a hero. A legend. He didn’t want any of this, he came here to see his friends and reconnect with his campers, not talk about war. The last thing he wanted to do was talk about the war but the vague answers he gave were no longer sufficient. The electricity buzzed at his fingertips and nagged at the back of his head. He took a deep breath, _you’re not angry you’re annoyed_ he thought to himself and walked off leaving the crowd behind him. Nico was right about the conscious effort, he found himself muttering to himself out loud to not annihilate everyone at the slightest inconvenience. He was doing better, but there were times when he came a little too close for everyone’s comfort. A scorched tree near the lake was tesitiment enough to that. Jason didn’t know where in Hades he was going but it was away from the group, gods they were like his entourage and he wasn’t faring too well from all the attention. Sure he would joke here and there but vanity for a soldier was never too good.

He found himself in Percy’s Cabin and shut the door behind him with a sigh. He was only a little scared when he heard a sigh in return.

“Shit Perce”He panted throwing a hand over his chest, “Don’t do that, I could’ve zapped you”

“Oh so you do know who I am?”The green eyed boy hummed, “That’s good to know”

“What do you mean?”He asked.

“You’ve just been so busy with your fans out there,”Percy continued, “Thought you forgot about me”

“I didn’t think you had time for jealousy”He said with a smirk.

“Well it’s one son of a bitch with a tight grip”Percy said staring dead at him. He had just admitted that he was jealous and Jason didn’t know what to do. He was expecting a spray to the face not a confession.

“Perce I was just kidding”He tried to amend but the green eyed boy shook his head.

“Well I’m not”Percy said and left the cabin. Jason still stood frozen by the door and felt the wind brush against his cheek as it shut for a second time.

Yes Jason Grace was stubborn. But Percy seemed to be catching up.

-

“Why is he being so _moody_?”Jason groaned and sat on the stairs of Cabin 13, “I-I don’t understand, that’s not like him…”

“People can be hard to read sometimes”Will said, “Especially Percy, if he’s not usually like this then something is bothering him”

“I agree”Nico said playing with the freckled boys hair, “You said he just outright said it?”

“ _Yes_ ”Jason said, “Honest to gods I was just joking but even the way he said it was strange, he’s never that serious about anything”

“Percy being serious”Nico pondered. This was the same person who begged him to shadow travel to Hawaii because he wanted to play with the dolphins.

“It was...I-I don’t know!”Jason exclaimed throwing his hands up, “You had to be there to see his face”

“Well maybe you should just go talk to him?”Will suggested, “When someone says something like that they might want you to follow them”

“He wanted me to follow him?”Jason asked with furrowed brows, “Why wouldn’t he just ask me? That’s childish”

“Percy is childish”Nico said shaking his head, “But a lot of people do it, they want to feel wanted. I used to do it all the time with Will”

“And I would always be right behind him,”Will said with a smile, “People express their wants in different ways”

“It has been a full year since you’ve last seen each other”Nico said, “I visit as often as I can but Percy doesn’t have the same powers. I was more than willing to take him with me but _someone_ put me on a shadow travel ban”

“Don’t start with me,”Will said folding his arms, “The gods don’t like ugly”

“No, they love it”Nico said leaning closer.

“Ahem”Jason coughed giving them a look.

“It’s just been a long time”Nico said, “He was really excited to hear you were coming early and you two had barely spoken to each other since you’ve got here. Don’t tell him I told you this but I think he misses you”

“Misses me?”Jason asked scrunching up his face, “Why?”

“Jason Grace for someone so intelligent you can be so stupid”Nico said shaking his head. Jason shook off the hit to his pride and pressed the brunet further.

“Because you’re friends!”Nico exclaimed, “You and Percy are _friends_ , of course he’s going to miss you!”

“I miss Nico when he goes on quests,I miss my siblings when they go home and I miss my mom when I’m here”Will shrugged, “It’s normal to miss people”

“Well I know that”Jason said rolling his eyes, “I miss people too but I don’t understand why he would miss me. He’s pretty famous here too and he’s made quite a name for himself, he shouldn’t have time to miss me”

“Time has nothing to do with it Jason, you’re not understanding”Nico said shaking his head, “When missing someone gets mixed with fear and worry it always takes the forefront of your mind”

“Why do you guys think I’m so important to him?”He asked clenching his jaw, “Sure I'm his friend but this? This is just being ridiculous, I know you Apollo kids love your theatrics but don’t let it rub off on Nico”

“Jason”Nico said, “Do you want to know something about Apollo kids that will really blow your mind?”

“Sure”Jason said.

“A few of them can’t tell lies, Will is one of them”Nico said, “He couldn’t if he tried and trust me, he’s tried so we’re not making this up”

“Also my mama told me that lying is wrong”Will shrugged. “But yeah the whole Apollo kids thing is true, at least for me and my siblings”

“I didn’t think you guys were lying”Jason sighed, “It just doesn’t seem like the truth. I get why i’m important in politics and battle but friendships? Why would my friendship mean anything to him?”

“Because when you let yourself relax you’re a pretty cool person”Nico said, “You and Percy get along like you’ve known each other your entire lives, I don’t see that happen around here too often anymore”

“Yeah”Will said, “The last summer you spent here you and Percy were practically inseparable, you did things as a team”

“I know we did and I um...I miss that”Jason said softly, “I miss it a lot.”

“Then go tell him that before it’s too late”Nico urged, “You’ve been here for almost a month and I haven’t seen you two talk”

Jason nodded but he knew all too well that Percy and talking weren’t going to agree right now. If Percy wouldn’t talk, they would just have to spar.

-

Jason thought he had the match all under control but boy was he wrong. It seems as if the green eyed boy had finally taken him up on his advice and started practicing. He no longer stabbed wildly hoping he’d hit the target, and Jason couldn’t chalk up the scratch on his face to an accident. Percy knew what he was doing and no apology was uttered from his mouth. He fought with the tactic of Annabeth and the unforgiving nature of Nico. But unlike Percy with his one track mind, Jason could multitask. He grimaced from the sting of the cut but decided not call it foul play, they weren’t kids anymore, he could take a scratch. Taking a step back, he held his sword in front of him beckoning Percy closer. The rules were simple, no powers,no serious injuries and no tricks. The no tricks part became questionable to Jason as his shirt was cut from riptide. Of course no skin was broken but what he would give to dropkick Percy right now. This time he struck first, he was through with Percy’s shit. Their swords clashed and with all of his might Jason pushed on it causing Percy to topple to the ground. His sword fel

l out of his hand and in a flash Jason threw his sword to the side and jumped on the struggling boy.

“Foul play!”Percy hissed and tried to regain the upper hand but Jason was stronger. He settled on the older boys hips and bored down on him with all of his weight. If this was how they had to talk then so be it.

“Fuck foul play what’s wrong with you?”Jason asked keeping a firm grip on his wrists, “You usually never go for the face”

“Well you like the pain well enough, decided to let you have some”Percy said snarkily wiggling his hips, “Get off of me!”

“Don’t make me regret telling you that Percy”Jason said his voice taking on a cold tone, “And please for the gods sake don’t make an enemy out of me, you won’t like it.”

“Now that you’re some big hero you think you could talk to me anyway you want?”Percy asked, narrowing his eyes.

“What the fuck are you talking about?”Jason asked.

“You think you’re better than me”Percy panted staring up at him, the fight was slowly leaving his body, it would only hurt more if he struggled.

“Percy you know that’s not true”Jason said shaking his head, “What makes you think that?”

“Scared I might fight you?”Percy asked referring to their position. 

“I’m not scared of much”Jason brushed off, “Just answer my question”

“I don’t have to do anything”Percy said.

“You said you were jealous”Jason blurted out, “Why?”

“Get off of me”Percy snarled.

“Answer my question”

“Let go of my wrists”

So Jason did, it was a bad move. All the fight that left soon returned in a burst of energy. Percy began pushing at Jason’s shoulders and trying to throw the younger boy off of him, he was almost succeeding until Jason got his wrists again and they were back where they started.

“Percy stop fighting me!”Jason snapped.

“Then stop trying to embarass me!”Percy shouted.

“We are completely alone up here!”Jason shouted gesturing around, “I chose to spar here because we _would_ be alone! I’m not trying to sabotage you man”

“W-what?”Percy said licking his lips.

“I wouldn’t do _this_ on the main sparring grounds”Jason said with a sigh, “I just wanted to talk to you and I knew the only way you would talk is if we fought.”

“So you let me take those hits?”Percy asked.

“No actually I didn’t”Jason said with a laugh, “You’ve gotten better,stronger and more calculated. But I don’t take face hits lightly so that’s why I kinda snapped”

“You lunged at me like an animal”Percy snickered.

“I was raised by _wolves_!”Jason exclaimed and they were both laughing, Jason rolled off of Percy’s hips and opted to lay next to him instead. Both boys didn’t say anything as they stared up at the sky, the sun was going down, dinner would be soon. Jason wanted this solved before dinner.

“Percy”He mumbled.

“Hmm?”Percy hummed.

“Why are you jealous?”He asked.

“Why wouldn’t I be?”Percy retorted with a dry chuckle, “Everyone loves you here, you’re a hero.”

“That’s not true”He said.

“It is”Percy insisted, “They all just love talking to you and about you, everyone here is crazy for Jason Grace”

“And”Jason prompted, that couldn’t be it. Percy didn’t care about trivial things like this, Jason knew this.

“And you’ve been spending less time with me”Percy said quietly, “I wanna laugh it off and make some stupid joke but honestly, I just miss you.”

“You should have told me”He said in the same tone, “I’m bad at reading people”

“You were busy with your fans and other friends”Percy waved off, “I knew I would see you at some point but you even stopped coming back to the cabin at night. You seemed to be having fun”

“I was faking it”He said, “I hate the attention, I really do. I just want things to be normal again, I don’t want to be a hero”

“But you are one”Percy said with a shrug, “It’s the demigod life, you either die young,go darkside or become a hero”

“I’d rather the first option”He laughed, but when he looked over at Percy he was uncharacteristically serious once again.

“If you die Jason Grace I will curse every god both Roman and Greek individually then find out a way to murder the fates”Percy said, “I don’t give a _fuck_ about their golden thread, you’re not dying until you’re good and ready”

“You’re insane”He said now cackling, “You’re absolutely insane!”

“I wasn’t joking”Percy snapped, “I’ll find a way”

“Well I haven’t gone yet so let that be your peace”he said with a smile, “We should get going, dinner will be soon”

“Or we can skip dinner and watch the stars?”Percy said, “It’s all your call”

“ _The_ Percy Jackson skipping a meal?”He asked, “You must’ve really missed me”

“You wish Grace”Percy said and pushed his shoulder, “It was just a suggestion”

“I’m down”He said with a smile, “I really haven’t spent any time with you since I’ve been here, I’m sorry”

“Apology accepted and events forgotten”Percy said.

“Tell me about what’s been happening in your life”He said resting his arms underneath his head.

“It’s been uneventful”Percy shrugged, “I went on a few quests,visited my mom,broke up with Annabeth,tried chicago style pizza-”

“Hold on”He said rubbing the bridge of his nose, “back it up”

“I visited my mom”Percy said in a duh voice, “You know Sally man”

“Yes I do and she’s amazing but _why_ did you break up with Annabeth?”He asked.

“It’s a long story maybe another time-”

“I’ve got time”He said sharply, “Come on bro, no more secrets”

“No more secrets”Percy sighed, “Promise that you won’t think any less of me?”

“I promise”He said.

“Well what I told a few weeks ago was a lie”He mumbled, “Was trying to save face and stuff…”

“Mhm”Jason hummed.

“Last fall we were um...we had a little bit of time off so we all piled into the Aphrodite Cabin to play truth or dare”Percy said.

“Uh huh”He said.

“I got a choice between a truth and a dare, tell them about a moment of weakness or kiss Leo Valdez”

Jason snorted, of course that was the type of question they would ask. He nodded and Percy continued.

“Of course I chose the dare because I wasn’t going to expose myself like that”Percy said in a pleading tone, “I-I couldn’t let them know, I just couldn-”

“Shhh”He said and placed his hand over the brunets, “take your time”

Percy nodded and blamed the sparks shooting across his body to Jason accidentally zapping him.

“I um I kissed Leo in front of everyone because I didn’t think anything was going to happen. Turns out a very big something happened and I was mortified, I didn’t want to give them the satisfaction of seeing me run so I stayed. I blamed it on the Aphrodite cabin, I thought they bewitched me…”Percy said.

“But?”He prompted.

“But I talked to Annabeth about it and she suggested I try it again to see if it was a fluke”Percy sighed.

“I’m guessing it wasn’t”He said with soft eyes.

“No”Percy croaked, in the dark of night Jason could hear the soft sniffles. “I liked it, gods I liked it so much...I was disgusted with myself. Hell Annabeth wasn’t mad, I couldn’t understand why. Turns out I’m not subtle and I tend to stare at men just as much as I stare at women”

“It’s okay”He said rubbing Percy’s shoulder.

“We um, we decided to end things on mutual terms”Percy said rubbing his nose, “But she told everyone I had broken up with her so my pride didn’t take a hit”

“Yeah Annabeth is sweet like that”He said, “She cares about you Percy”

“I care about her so much”Percy sniffled, “I wish that night wouldn’t have happened, I wish I could live in denial. I know it wouldn’t last forever but it would buy me a few more years without this confusion”

“You’re no less of a man for liking men too”He said, “And you’re definitely no less of my friend. Thank you for telling me Percy, honest to gods thank you”

“I trust you”Percy said shakily, gripping the blades of grass, “Just don’t tell anyone _please_ , I-I’m not ready!-”

“Oh Percy”He said softly, instinct took over and Jason wrapped the green eyed boy into his arms. Percy gripped at Jason’s shirt and weeped mumbling incoherently. Jason’s brows were drawn in a tight line as he rubbed his back and tried to take the phrases in stride. 

“E-even Nico doesn’t know”Percy whimpered and the revelation caused him to cry harder.

“It’s okay if Nico doesn’t know”He said in a soft tone, “He doesn’t need to know right now, you tell him when you’re ready”

And.

“I shouldn’t be crying over this”Percy wailed, “I’ve fought in wars,I’ve been to the underworld, I’ve-”

“You’re still human”He cut him off, “Change is scary when it happens so abruptly. The rain is caused by the tears of jupiter-”

“Zeus”Percy corrected.

“Zeus, forgot I was on Greecian grounds”He amended, “Achilles wept in his tent for Patroclus, Ulysses-”

“Odysseus”Percy corrected.

“Odysseus”He said with a pointed look, “Wept for Penelope after they reunited, I...I still cry for my sister. Men and gods alike cry Percy so why shouldn’t we?”

“I guess you’re right”Percy said wiping his eyes, “everything just feels so messy right now and this happened in the fall”

“It happened in the fall but you’re dealing with your feelings _now_ ”He said, “It’s going to feel brand new when you finally allow yourself to feel”

“Did Nico tell you that?”Percy asked.

“Yeah, matter of fact he did”He said with a smile.

“He’s grown up”Percy said with a yawn, “So much happier now”

“Yeah he’s got a walking star with him at all times”He said, “Was anyone going to tell me that Apollo kids glow or was I just supposed to wait and find out?”

“Only Will glows”Percy said, “He’s a special one”

“He glows when he’s happy”He said fondly, “That’s adorable”

“Yeah but Will is a warrior in his own right,”Percy said, “Him and an Artemis counselor got into a heated argument one time and they caused an eclipse.”

“Just a dark sky or…?”

“Full on blood moon”Percy mumbled, “For three days straight until she apologized”

“What was it over?”He asked.

“Nico”Percy said softly. “Heard her ranting about how he’s nothing without his powers and then suddenly the sky goes dark. I wasn’t there to see it but I heard Will went ballistic, cursing and screaming”

“He’s good for Nico then?”He asked resting his head in the crook of Percy’s neck.

“They’re a perfect match”Percy said and yawned again, “ ‘m tired Jason”

“Then go to sleep, I’ll wake you before curfew”

Percy rolled a bit so he had a leg over Jason's hip and mumbled how that was a good idea before falling asleep.

-

To Jason’s surprise Percy was quite the heavy sleeper. He had poked,prodded and even zapped the boy with no response but a snore. He probably wasn’t sleeping too well Jason thought and clicked his teeth sympathetically, he knew the feeling. The nightmares came nothing short of harrowing and that was on a good quest free day, he couldn’t imagine what was going through his head this past year.  
“Alright Percy”Jason grumbled,”Since you wanna do this the hard way”

He rolled out from underneath the dark haired boys leg and pushed himself to his feet with a huff, gods were his muscles stiff. He squatted down and expected some sort of challenge when he lugged the boy over his shoulder but found none, Percy felt light despite being deadweight. Too light, The blonde narrowed his eyes, he wonders how well he had been eating. He felt guilty, maybe this whole sexuality thing was taking a bigger toll than expected. But Percy wouldn’t do that,he was a fighter and he had to keep up his strength,maybe his weight was just fluctuating?-A million thoughts raced through Jason’s head but he managed to push them aside. His main concern was getting Percy down to Cabin three before the harpies came out for a night time snack.

He looked around and bit his lip tugging his scar between his teeth. He _would_ fly them but his dad and Percy...it wasn’t necessarily a good mix. _It would be a short flight_ ,he tried to reason, _less than a minute._ He took off quickly and even prayed to Juno that his father didn’t immediately blast them out of the sky. Once they landed in front of Cabin three a blast of lightning darted across the sky, a warning.

“Cry me a river”Jason mumbled and kicked open the door quickly sliding in. The door rattled from yet another strike of lightning and Jason sent a bolt back in defiance. He knew it was childish to get into it with his father but gods was he annoyed.

“You’ve got some nerve”Jason said loudly, “Whenever Percy is with me, he _will_ be safe”

The sky rumbled in in disagreement, but for once jason held his ground.

“I’m not afraid of you anymore dad”He said, “you can’t bully me anymore”

The thunder ceased, and Jason felt a gust of wind behind him.

“You’ve gotten bolder-”

“Gods almighty!”He exclaimed and nearly threw Percy out of his arms. He hadn’t seen his father in years, let alone as his greek counterpart.

“Why are you here?”He asked frowning, “Wasn’t your light show warning enough?”

“Because my son is trying to pick fights”Zeus said with a shrug.

“Right now you’re Thalia’s dad, not mine”He said raising a brow. Zeus sighed and snapped his fingers, he was now dressed in rich royal silk and had a wreath of gold in his hair.

“Better?”Zeus-now Jupiter said.

“It’s something”He said shakily, He wanted to be happy but now he was on the defense. He couldn’t face his dad alone with Percy practically unconscious. He sat Percy down behind him, and fixed his feet into a fighting stance.

“I’m not here to fight you Jason”Jupiter said. “I’m here to congratulate you”

Okay so this was definitely a trap.

“Alright whatever you’re here to argue over is now between you and me”He said, “Don’t drag Percy into it”

“I won’t”Jupiter shrugged.

“Swear on Styx”Jason said narrowing his brows.

“I Jupiter swear on the river Styx that no harm will come to son of Poseidon Percy Jackson during this conversation”Jupiter droned, “Happy?”

“Elated”He snarled, “Now what do you want?”

“Look”Jupiter said, “I know you’re angry that i’m just now showing up after-”

“-after my claiming I know the time”He huffed.

“But there is no reason to be hostile”Jupiter said narrowing his eyes, “I don’t come to harm you nor... _Percy_ ”

“Then why are you here dad?”He asked folding his arms.

“It wasn’t a planned visit”Jupiter admitted, “I just noticed that over the years you’ve grown bolder, I wanted to congratulate you. You’re becoming a fine leader and a fine praetor.You’re becoming more like me everyday-”

“Don’t say that!”Jason blanched.

“My good qualities-”

“You have those?”Jason said under his breath.

“You know what I mean!”Jupiter snapped, a roll of thunder crossed the skies.

“Yeah um...thank you”Jason said shifting uncomfortably.

“Yeah”Jupiter sighed, “I also bring blessings from Juno”

“Juno?”Jason asked tilting his head, “for what?”

“Oh”Jupiter said fondly, “You don’t know yet”

“Don’t know what!”Jason exclaimed.

“That is something you’ll have to figure out on your own”Jupiter chuckled and in a gust of wind he was gone.

“Fuck I hate when he does that”Jason grumbled. In an instant Percy was awake and clambering to his feet. 

God magic.

No wonder he was out cold.

“What did I miss?”Percy asked cracking his neck.

“Just a visit from dear old dad”Jason huffed.

“While I was here!”Percy exclaimed, “Zeus was in my Cabin! I could have died!”

“You were fine”Jason said rubbing his ears, “I made him swear on Styx not to hurt you”

“And he _listened_?”Percy howled, “You hear that Zeus, you!-”

A crack of lightning hit the Cabin and Percy dove behind Jason for cover. The blonde rolled his eyes and stepped to the side.

“Trust me that was a warning, if he wanted to hit you he would”He said. The skies rumbled in what Jason could only interpret as laughter before silencing again.

“Your dad is a dick”Percy grumbled.

“Oh he knows”He said with a sigh, “Came down here to congratulate me for my gusto or whatever, it was weird. He also mentioned something about a blessing from Juno”

“Why would Juno be blessing you?”Percy asked.

“Exactly!”He exclaimed, “It’s not like her to just hand out random blessings”

“Well how about you ask her?”Percy asked.

“Nah dude, if Jupiter wouldn’t tell me then she won’t either”He said taking a seat on Percy’s bed.

“You think the gods are meddling again?”Percy asked.

“Isn’t that what they do best?”He replied, “Juno is the goddess of marriage-oh hades what if she still thinks I'm with Piper?”

“You broke up with Piper!”Percy exclaimed.

Oh shit.

“Fuck I-yes-no?”He sputtered, “Yes, we broke up…”

“Dude why?”Percy asked taking a seat next to him.

“The thought of our love being anything but free will didn’t sit right with either of us”He said, “We both decided it was better to split”

“And how are you doing man?”Percy asked with soft eyes, “all jokes aside, are you okay?”

The tone in the room took on a serious tone, everything down to the air was still.

“No…”He whispered shaking his head. There it was, the single word he had afraid to say. Back at camp Jupiter he couldn’t let anyone know that he was affected by it, it made him cold but it was essential to his image. But here, with Percy. He didn’t care about his image, about his status. In all honesty he just wanted to cry.

“I-it...it sucks man”He said inhaling shakily, “We...we swore on Styx that it would always be us…”

“I know”Percy said softly and rubbed his back, “I know it sucks but I’m here”

The last weary thread of his resolve, snapped. The blonde let out a choked sob and instinctually his hands flew up to cover his face, to cover his _shame_.

“Oh Jason…”Percy whispered and threw an arm around him. Harsh rains began to hit the Cabin and Jason curled up on himself trying to be as small as possible. He could hear the sounds of whips resonating through his memory, _a soldier shouldn’t cry_ , he thought. He could feel them just barely breaking the skin but enough to sting, enough to remind him why soldiers didn’t cry like infants. He tried to dry his eyes but he couldn’t, he felt like a rubber band finally snapping. Like the walls put up sturdily around his emotions were broken down just by one phrase. _I’m here_.

“I-I miss her Percy”He blubbered, “Miss her so much, felt so fu-fucking angry about everything without her…”

“I know, I felt the same way with Annabeth”He sighed, “Just let it out Jason”

And so he did, the crying turned to screaming at some point and Percy had to offer up a pillow for support. Once Jason had thoroughly got most of the emotion out of his system he slumped back onto Percy’s bed. Red eyed and defeated. A few stray tears still fell and snot trickled down his nose, this felt worse than war. A situation he actually had control over but he had let it fall apart in his hands. Jason Grace had failed.

“Is it supposed to hurt so bad?”He said in a raspy tone. Percy nodded sadly and Jason gave a crooked smile.

“Awesome”He croaked and a few more tears fell.

“I...come here”Percy sighed and opened his arms, “I’m not good with words like you are but I can do this”

Jason nodded and scooted up the bed until he back was flat against Percy’s chest. He sighed and let himself become deadweight, he had never been hugged like this before. Someone else’s arms wrapped around him making him feel safe. It felt nice.

“This feels nice”He mumbled.

“Yeah”Percy said, “There was something my mom used to say to me when I was a kid.”

“Hmm?”Jason hummed.

“She used to say that hugs were like magic, that they can heal almost anything. I know it’s silly but I believe her, I really do. Whenever I had a bad day at school, or someone gave me a hard time she would give me a big hug and everything would be okay…”Percy said.

“I’m starting to believe her too…”Jason whispered, there was no reason to. It wasn’t even curfew yet but it felt like the right thing to do. 

“I’m going to let go for a sec to get comfortable, that cool?”Percy whispered back. Jason nodded and the second Percy’s arms were gone he frowned, were hugs this powerful? Percy scooted up on the bed and laid down beckoning Jason forward.

“So we’re cuddling now?”Jason asked raising a brow.

“All forms of hugs heal”He said seriously. Jason couldn’t argue with that logic so he kicked off his shoes and laid down pulling the blanket up with him. Percy squirmed a bit and wrapped his arms back around Jason's torso.

“Take your glasses off before you break them”He mumbled. Jason nodded and placed them on the chest beside the bed.

“How are things back at home?”Jason asked. Percy let out a deep sigh and felt a sliver of guilt rush through him, he hadn’t visited in a while.

“It’s been a while…”he admitted, “But last time I checked everyone is happy. Mom had the baby and Paul is well Paul”

“You’re a big brother”Jason grinned and hiccuped a bit.

“Yup”He nodded, his nose tickled the back of Jason’s neck, “Her name is Estelle and she’s perfect, we all call her Stella”

“You’re whipped”Jason laughed.

“If she wanted a constellation, I’d fight every god in mount olympus to give it to her”He admitted, “I never thought I could love someone so much…”

“I’d like to meet little Stella”Jason teased, but hearing the way Percy talked about her turned his heart to mush. Gods did he love children and hearing Percy talk with so much devotion made him feel giddy.

“You should come by moms during Christmas”He mumbled, “Take a break from your praetor duties”

“Oh uh...I don’t know Percy”Jason said playing with the threads of the blanket,”I don’t want to intrude”

“When's the last time you had a christmas?”He asked.

“Never did”Jason said.

“Unacceptable”He objected cutting himself off with a yawn, “You need the full experience. We’re gonna decorate the tree,go ice skating,sing carols,take Estelle to see santa...the works man”

“Will Sally have me?”Jason asked quietly.

“My mom loves you...and Nico, mostly Nico”He said and Jason snickered, despite his demeanor Nico seemed to be popular amongst parents.

“I’ll have to ask Reyna”Jason said finally, “She said come Fall i’ll be doing Praetor duties full time”

“Reyna needs to let you have fun”He yawned, “She’s got you on a tight leash”

“Those are her orders”Jason sighed, “The whole camps got me on a tight leash”

“You should stay here year...year round”He said nuzzling his cheek against Jason’s shoulder, “Would be great…”

“Yeah it would”Jason said. He waited for an answer but only got the gentle sound of snores _directly_ in his ears. If Percy had already fallen asleep twice today maybe it was an indication that he should get some rest. The campers would be coming in less than a week so he needed to load up on sleep while he could. He twisted stiffly in order to not wake Percy and let his eyes shut, gods was he exhausted. He forgot how much crying took out of you. He fell into an easy sleep and dreamt of nothing for once. 

Percy was right, all forms of hugs were healing.

But cuddles were better.

-

The two boys woke up a tangle of limbs with Jason graciously sliding off the bed. His wake up call was hitting the floor with a loud thump and groaning. Percy stirred and bolted up feeling around his pocket for riptide.

“Shit Jay”he mumbled, “What happened?”

“Fell off the bed”Jason replied, “My head hurts”

“Well did you bump it?”He asked.

“No”Jason whined, “Feels like ‘m dying”

“Crying headache”he said and cleared his throat violently, “You’re just dehydrated, go drink some water”

“Water doesn’t solve all of life’s problems aquaboy”Jason snapped and slowly climbed to his feet.

“That’s aqua _man_ to you, superboy”He said with a smirk.

“I will fry you”Jason glowered.

“Sorry not my kink”He said.

“When will you let that go?”Jason groaned rubbing his face, “This is why I don’t tell you anything!”

“Well you told me and I'm thoroughly enjoying it”He said with a cheeky grin.

“I will murder you”Jason huffed.

“I’ll put you over my knee”He said raising a brow. Jason squawked indiginently and stomped off to the bathroom. Percy waited for the door to close before bursting into laughter.

“Shut it Jackson!”Jason shouted through the door, “And come brush your teeth! We’re late for breakfast!”

“Not while you’re pissing!”he shouted back.

“I’m washing my face!”Jason retorted. Percy rolled off the bed and padded into the bathroom, gods did he need a shower, would he have enough time to shower?

“Here”Jason said handing him his toothbrush. He mumbled a thanks and got to brushing. Once Jason was done he shuddered and rubbed his arms.

“Hey Perce can I borrow your hoodie?”He asked, “Andrea still has mine”

“Sure”Percy said through a mouthful of toothpaste, “Is in tha trunk”

“Thanks”He said, “Don’t forget to floss and use mouthwash”

“Thanks dad”Percy mumbled.

“Eh, I prefer daddy”He said with a wink and fled the room. The green eyed boy choked on the toothpaste and promptly spat in the sink.

“Do you think it’s socially acceptable for me to wear pajama pants?”Percy asked walking out of the bathroom. 

“I don’t care what you wear as long as we get going”He said, “We’re _late_ ”

“I’m not even that hungry”Percy huffed, “Go on without me, I’ll get a snack later”

“No”He said, “You’re going to eat, you’ve gotten thinner and you need to keep up your strength”

“But i’m not hungry-”

“But I don’t care”He said sternly. “I won’t take no for an answer, not with this”

“You’re so annoying”Percy grumbled sliding his shoes on.

“Save the attitude for someone who wants it”He said sliding the hoodie over his head.

“My company comes with my attitude”Percy said crossing his arms.

“Then I guess it’s all mine isn’t it?”He hissed.

“Lucky You”Percy snapped and stomped out of the Cabin. Jason sighed and jogged out after him.

“Percy what’s wrong?”He said, “I thought we promised no more secrets?”

“I’m trying to watch my weight okay?”Percy snapped and kept his eyes low, “I spent a lot of time at home earlier this year and I got a little heavier…”

“Well what’s the matter with that?”He asked, “Weight fluctuation is normal”

“I didn’t like it,”Percy said, “I was losing my abs and I felt less…”

“Attractive?”He supplied.

“Yeah”Percy sighed, “Now that I say it out loud it sounds vein. I decided to eat less and train more but it just became a bit of a habit I guess”

“It’s not vain to care about how you look”He said, “But that’s not a healthy habit to follow, there’s got to be a balance. You have to eat the right things and exercise, can’t just starve yourself bro”

“I wasn’t starving...or maybe I was”Percy shrugged. “It’s not that big of deal”

“It’s a big deal to me”He said a fire blazing behind his eyes, “This is not a sustainable way of living, this will _kill_ you and you’re not dying until you’re good and ready”

“Using my own words against me”Percy chuckled awkwardly.

“Yeah”he said, “Swear on Styx that you’ll try and eat more”

“I!-”

“Matter of fact, put your hands out in front of you too”He said, “No crossing fingers”

“Fine”Percy huffed and held his hands out. “I Percy Jackson swear on the river Styx that I will try, _try_! To eat more”

“It’s done”He said, “I’m not doing this to be an ass Percy, I promise”

“I know you aren’t”Percy said, “I’m not mad at you”

The two left it at that as they walked to breakfast. The hall was practically cleared except for a few Artemis kids,Will,Nico and Annabeth.

“Jason Grace!”Annabeth said standing up from the table, “It’s good to see you!”

“It’s good to see you too Annabeth”He said and gave her a hug, “Where have you been this entire time?”

“Doing moms dirty work”She sighed, “Hey Percy!”

“Hey Anna”Percy said and gave her a quick hug and kiss on the cheek, “How was the quest?”

“Boring”she sighed, “Wasn’t much of a quest, just helping her with strategies”

“Oh you’re playing with the big dogs now”Jason chuckled, “Athena is letting you help strategize?”

“She said I’m ready but I'm guessing she was desperate”She said rolling her eyes, “I’m just glad to be back. I think I might throw up if I have to organize anything for the next few years”

“Well I hope you’re off the clock today, what time did you get back?”Jason asked taking a seat.

“I’m off the clock for the rest of the week.”She said, “I got here around 3am, threatened Chiron that if he didn’t give me a break I’d leave for good”

“You did _not_ ”Jason gaped.

“Oh but she did!”Will laughed, “I didn’t believe it much either”

“Always so forward”Percy chuckled.

“Always so clueless”She shot back, “It’s good to see you seaweed brain, seriously”

“I know my rugged good looks are hard to be away from for so long”he joked and quickly dodged and punch hiding behind Jason.

“I am not a shield!”Jason cried out, “Anyways what was for breakfast?”

“Cereal,orange juice and bagels”Will said, “Gods I could go for some grits and eggs right now”

“Some wha?”Percy asked making a face.

“Oh gods don’t get him started-”Nico said.

“Only one of the finest southern cuisines money can buy!”Will exclaimed.

“Oh gods i’ve got him started”Percy whispered in horror.

“Good luck with that, I’ll grab us some food”Jason said and patted his back.

“He’s got your hoodie on”Nico whispered in his ear through Will’s insistent ranting.

“Yeah”Percy shrugged, “Andrea still has his”

“Alright”Nico said in a strange tone.

“-Don’t even get me started on sweetea-”

“We won’t!”Nico exclaimed clamping a hand over the freckled boys mouth, “That’s enough tesoro”

“You sound so pretty speaking italian”Will said with dreamy eyes.

“Mmm I think you sound pretty cute speaking it too, say Ciao”Nico said.

“Ciao”Will repeated in a dreamlike state.

“See?”Nico said proudly, “So cute, amore”

“Jeez Nico you’ve got him wrapped around your finger”Annabeth said with a smirk, “Teach me your ways”

“No, I think it’s the other way around”Nico said fondly.

“This is so cute I'm going to puke”Percy said with a lopsided grin. Seeing Will and Nico’s romance bloom was bittersweet at it’s finest.

“I’m back and I managed to fight off the Artemis girls for the box of cereal and some milk”Jason panted, “The bagels were long gone dude”

“That’s fine”Percy shrugged, “Any fruit?”

“No but we can go to the strawberry field later?”Jason suggested.

“Sounds like a plan, but I actually have a schedule today”Percy groaned, “Nico and I promised to spar with Andrea”

“Spar?”Jason sputtered, “She’s five”

“Five and a half”Nico said, “She takes it very seriously”

“We’re obviously going to go easy on her,”Percy said, “these are her learning years, we need to build up her confidence”

“Will she be using a sword?”Jason asked tilting his head, “how is this going to work-Percy here take your bowl”

“Thanks”Percy grumbled, “And of course she’ll be using a sword, a plastic one”

“Milk”Jason said passing him the gallon.

“Do you wanna spoon feed me next?”Percy snapped and grabbed a spoon.

“Maybe”Jason shrugged with a laugh, but his eyes were serious.

“Don’t get him riled up or he might burst the water pipes”Annabeth said. The group laughed and Percy hung his head low in shame, it was one time! 

“Ah be nice to him”Jason teased, “Aquaboy can’t control it sometimes”

“Think about that next time you barbecue someone”Percy grumbled.

“I don’t barbecue people”Jason hissed, “I fry their organs, it’s different”

“But it’s not!”

The two boys fell into a heated argument and Annabeth shook her head leaning against Will’s side.

“Look at the couple fighting”She said quietly, “Uh oh, Jason’s eyes are doing the thing…”

“Well do you want to find out!”The blonde shouted.

“That’s not my kink!”Percy shouted back. Once he registered the words he said his body immediately chilled but Jason looked surprisingly calm, too calm.

“Not mines either man”Jason shrugged and chuckled, but it was forced. Percy could tell from the way his chest constricted and the way his ears slightly pinkened. Oh no, he was embarrassed.

“I should get back to the Cabin to shower”Jason said standing up, “Perce, you mind cleaning up the bowls? Thanks”

Before he could respond Jason was on his way out of the dining pavilion. The green eyed boy quickly tried to gauge the reaction of the others around him but they seemed none the wiser. He was relieved but a little disappointed in them. Jason was _clearly_ upset, how could they not tell?

“So you two are on good terms again?”Nico said cautiously.

“Oh of course”Percy nodded, “For a while now, we uh figured everything out”

He knew Nico was waiting for more detail but one thing that Percy’s finally learned was a sense of privacy. Their little bonding session last night didn’t need to be known to anyone besides them, to save face of course.

“I could’ve told you that”Will said nudging Nico’s shoulder, “He’s wearing Percy’s hoodie”

“Only because Andrea has his”Percy said rolling his eyes, “She’s a little hoodie goblin”

“Don’t call my amore a goblin!”Nico defended.

“Yeah what has she done to you?”Will pouted.

“Eileithyia please give these two a child before I throw up”Percy muttered under his breath.

“Getting back to the topic”Annabeth said, “Doesn’t Jay have his own camp jupiter hoodie?”

Percy bit back a grunt, only he called Jason Jay.

“I don’t know”Percy said, “I mean I don’t think so? Camp jupiter is in California so it’s not that cold over the-”

“Percy”Annabeth said cutting off his rambling, “He definitely has his own hoodie”

“Oh well”Percy sighed, “I’ll just get mine back from him tonight, it’s no big deal”

“Yeah”Nico smirked, “Will and I share clothes all the time”

“What are you instigating?”Percy said narrowing his eyes.

“It’s insinuating dumbass”Annabeth said.

“No I think I'm doing a little bit of both”Nico said smugly, “Oh would you look at the time? I need to go give cerberus a bath”

“Nico don’t you dare”Will threatened. The dark haired boy scooted back into the shadows and disappeared.

“He did it”Will grumbled, “If you need me I'll be down in the infirmary, see you later”

Will soon left soon with a duo of bye’s exclaimed at his backs.

“Huh”Percy tutted, “I didn’t know Cerberus took baths”

-

“Jay?”Percy called out cautiously as he walked into the Cabin, “Jay are you in here?”

“In the shower!”Jason called back, “I’ll be out in a few!”

Percy gave a noise of confirmation and tried to busy himself by picking out clothes. That task quickly fell short when he realized how limited his wardrobe was, he still dressed like a twelve year old. It was all baggy shorts and camp tee shirts with a few nicer pieces at the bottom of his trunk for going into the city. He needed to go shopping and soon, his clothes at home weren’t very versatile either. Maybe he could convince Chiron to let him…  
“I’m out”Jason said, “Showers all yours”

He looked up and felt a slight tug at his chest, Jason was already dressed. He had a towel wrapped around his head instead, and tried to balance it while carrying his dirty clothes. Percy could see the spots on his tee shirt where he wasn’t fully dry and bit his lip softly, he was rushing.

“Something the matter?”Jason asked quirking a brow, “I said the showers free, either shower now or stink all day”

“I’m sorry!”Percy blurted out, “For earlier during breakfast Jay I...I’m sorry”

“It’s alright Perce”Jason said, “I can admit I was a little upset, so I left to cool down. I don’t...I uh don’t really mind you joking about it. Next time just keep it between us, yeah?”

Jason’s eyes shone a little bit and he even did the tilt and he was famous for. He truly wasn’t upset, the green eyed boy felt like a weight had been lifted.

“Yeah”Percy nodded letting out a breath, “Yeah...ima go shower now”

He snatched his towel off the hook and booked it for the shower. This would be good for him, a little alone time never did anyone any harm. He stripped off his shirt and grimaced at the resistance it gave, clinging to his body from a days worth of sweat. He felt disgusting, he flung the shirt into the corner of the bathroom and quickly stripped off his shorts. He had definite tan lines, a good trip down to the lake one of these days would fix that. He couldn’t resist looking in the mirror, it was tempting and damning all at the same time. 

So he looked.

He wasn’t surprised by what he saw, just a little disappointed. Sure he was handsome, good parents and godly genetics sure did the trick, but he wasn’t all too satisfied with himself anymore. He got told often enough to accept it but it was never really internalized. He poked and prodded at the softness of his hip bones and frowned, he’s been in battle, how could any part of him be soft? He swam,he trained and he even went on jogs early enough that Apollo and Artemis were still arguing down to the minute who had reign over the skies. Sure he had slacked a little but he shouldn’t look like this.

He shook his head, he didn’t have time to worry. There was no use worrying about cosmetic issues when he could simply fix them. Percy Jackson wasn’t a worrier, he was a doer. He acted first and thought later, it was who he was and besides, thinking never left him the best place. I _just have to do better_ , he thought. 

“Percy I don’t hear any water on in there which is especially strange for you!”Jason called out, a little muffled by the door, “You okay?”

Fuck, how long had he been in here?

“I got a little distracted, I’m getting in now”He said and quickly stripped his briefs, he wasn’t sure if Jason heard but he wasn’t necessarily looking for an answer anyways. Gods he was going to be late because he needed to wash everything _and_ shave, call it a swimmer thing, call it a son of Poseidon thing but body hair wasn’t his game. He thought up a game plan and quickly got to it.

“I’m gonna wash my hair first”He mumbled fumbling with the shampoo, “And while the conditioners soaking I’ll start washing my body…”

He poured a clumsy amount of shampoo into his hands and quickly ran it through his hair closing his eyes. He hummed and thought back to the last few weeks, everything has just been better since Jason got here. It seemed like everyone was happier when the lightning bolt came for a visit, he just had this natural authority to him that seemed to put people at ease. A small smile tugged at his lips as he scrubbed his scalp and bended the water to his will. He knew he wasn’t supposed to play with water indoors but it was an emergency! If he was late to his first concrete activity of the summer he would have to answer to Chiron. Ugh, he did not want to think about Chiron while was in the shower.

“...Before I wash the conditioner out, I’ll shave”he finished. The little stream of water he conjured washed the shampoo out of his hair while he started soaping up his body. He passed the cloth over his bare chest and scrubbed at the dirt and grime, it was so satisfying to watch it swirl down the drain. He could and would spend all day in the shower if time allowed him. But time wasn’t allowing him, he had an activity to teach, didn’t want to get lectured by Chiron. It was even worse thinking about it a _second_ time.

“Alright”he sighed speeding up the process, “Shampoo is already out, gotta stop washing and put in conditioner”

The stream of water gently picked up the soap from his hand and placed it on the tray while he grabbed the conditioner, it felt lighter.

“Jay!”He called.

“Yeah man?”Jason replied.

“Did you use my conditioner?”He asked,

“Yeah! Sorry forgot to tell you, I used some of your shampoo too!”Jason said.

Percy felt his chest constrict and his skin grow hot, he wasn’t mad. The set was cheap anyways, got it from a Walgreens in Manhattan. But Jason was going to smell like him for the rest of the day, the thought caused him to bite his lip and change the dial on the water to cold.

“Snap out of it”He mumbled, “Gotta condition your hair”

The remainder of the shower continued in a similar fashion until a sudden realization hit him. In his rush he had forgotten to grab his clothes off his bed. Fuck, this was exactly the type of stuff that happened to him. _It’s just Jason_ , he thought, _probably busy being a nerd and won’t even look at you_ . But the thought of it being Jason made him even more nervous, things were fine a few years ago when they were both too young to care. But they had grown, _Jason_ had grown. He was taller and broader and honest to gods ripped. Percy knew he shouldn’t be jealous, they trained harder at Camp Jupiter so it wasn’t like Jason had a choice to be so muscular. Why did he even care that Jason was muscular, he was still just Jason. 

Percy shook his hair out until it was damp and wrapped the towel around his waist pushing the door open quickly. His eyes didn’t leave the floor until his feet bumped against his bed. Quickly he snatched his clothes and practically booked it for the bathroom once again. He wasn’t sure if Jason had looked but from the way his heart was racing, he didn’t want to know. He pulled on his briefs and haphazardly threw on the rest of his clothes, fuck he was definitely late. He was a counselor now, he wasn’t just here for fun, he had actual duties. He pushed through the door and had something along the lines of ‘go on without me’ on his lips but his thoughts short circuited. Jason was wearing his hoodie, _again_. The early afternoon sun beamed down on camp and Percy cocked his head, it wasn’t chilly outside anymore. He wanted to say something but pushed the urge aside and grabbed his socks and sneakers sliding them on.

“Why did you wait?”Percy found himself asking, “You could have went up with Nico”

“I felt like it”Jason shrugged, “I was reading up on something for class anyways”

“You’re still in school?”Percy asked, “I thought they stopped teaching year round students young”

“Juno said she wanted me to have a tutor so I do.”He said blandly. “I’m older now so we only meet a few times out of the week”

“You sound happy”Percy snorted, “is it that bad?”

“Look at my hands”He said holding them out palm down. Percy inched forward and looked at the faint scarring across them.

“They _hit_ you?”Percy seethed.

“It’s not that bad anymore, doesn’t even hurt”He said quickly, “it’s more annoying than anything”

But Percy wasn’t listening, he was livid. He knew things were strict at Camp Jupiter but this, this was out of control.

“It’s to help me learn!”He said placing a hand on Percy’s shoulders, “Don’t get angry, please”

“No, no”Percy said shaking his head, “I’m already passed angry, I...I’m-”

Then the faucet in the bathroom burst. Then the one in neighboring Cabin, then the one after that and it continued down the line even reaching Nico’s who definitely had something to say about it. In a few seconds he was materializing beside Jason who was quite honestly frozen.

“What the fuck is happening?”Nico snapped, “What’s wrong with him?”

“He knows and he did not take it well”The blonde said quietly. It was almost as if Percy was in a trance, he could hear them talking about him sure, but all he could think about was forcing everyone who ever laid a hand on Jason to dry drown.

“Take what well?”Nico asked, “I’m so confused”

“How they hit me”He whispered.

“I thought they stopped”Nico said.

“Not me”He shook his head, “Everyone else i’m not sure but me I...I definitely still get it sometimes. It’s not as bad as it used to be though”

“But it’s still not right”Nico said.

“It’s only my hands now”He said, “I promise it’s only my hands, a ruler at that. It doesn’t hurt anymore-”

“But it’s wrong!”Percy exploded staring at the two with fire in his eyes, “Hitting people is wrong! They shouldn’t be doing this, they really shouldn’t be doing this. I’ll kill them, Jason. I’ll kill them all just give me names and-”

“It’s so I can learn”Jason repeated, “You don’t need to kill anyone Percy, it’s not that serious”

“It’s not that _serious_?”Percy hissed, “You’re downplaying it”

“Percy-”

“No that’s exactly what you’re doing!”He shouted, “I would know. From what that bastard did to my mother, gods do I know”

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you”Jason said softly, “I thought it wasn’t a big deal. I’m strong so I can take it”

“Yes but you don’t have to”Percy sighed, “I know _I'm_ making it a big deal, you’ve been through a war, you spar constantly, I don’t think you’re weak. I just fucking hate people in power thinking they can beat on anyone, I don’t like that you have to deal with this.”

“I only get hit if I’m wrong”Jason said, “Surprisingly there’s a method to the madness. I don’t think I've gotten beaten for nothing in years. Maybe the ruler comes down a little harder when my tutors had a bad day but it’s nothing I can’t take, you’ve got to believe me”

“I believe you”Percy sighed, “I don’t like it but I believe you. I’m also sorry about the watershow from earlier, I lost my cool”

“Better be sorry”Nico grumbled, “The floor of my Cabin is soaked”

“Yeah and so is mine”Percy said and rubbed his face, “We haven’t even gotten through the day and I’ve already messed something up”  
“You didn’t mean to”Jason said, “You lost control of yourself and it showed through your powers, means you’re getting stronger”

“Why water powers?”Nico continued to complain, “Why couldn’t you lose control and make money appear or flowers?”

“Don’t think I forgot about your little tantrums Nico”Percy smirked, “You used to raise skeletons at the slightest inconvenience”

“Yeah but at least they’re not wet”Nico grimaced, “I’m going to do you a favor and have them on clean up duty” He raised a hand towards a shadow and tens upon hundreds of skeletons emerged holding mops. It would be cute in theory if they weren’t so dead looking. “I’ll be up on the sparring grounds with Andrea, come when you’re ready”

With that he walked out the front door leading an army of skeletons with him. Jason gave Percy a side glance and walked over to his bed patting the spot next to him.

“You’re still angry”He said knowingly.

“Yeah”Percy huffed, “Yeah I am”

“Why?”He asked.

“Why?”Percy repeated, “Because it’s a total power play man, they’re taking advantage of you and I don’t like that.”

“If it doesn’t bother me why does it bother you?”He asked, “I’m okay Percy, I will _physically_ go to the underworld and swear on the river styx if it makes you happy”

“It won’t”Percy said shaking his head, “The only thing that will make me happy is if they stop, it’s got to stop”

“They won’t”He said shaking his head, “Corporal punishment is just apart of Camp Jupiter”

“Corporal punishment is an excuse to beat people into submission”Percy hissed, he was shaking.

“You’ll burst another pipe if you’re not careful”He said quietly and gave Percy a hand to squeeze, “Squeeze it”

“No”

“Percy-”

“I don’t want to hurt you,”Percy said, his voice sounded raw.

“I’m giving you consent”He said, “I'm asking you to do it, I’ll be okay”

Percy nodded and squeezed the blonde’s hand trying to concentrate every ounce of anger he felt into that instead of another accident. Jason let out a low breath and Percy’s eyebrows knitted together in worry.

“Am I hurting you?”He asked.

“Not at all”Jason breathed, “Percy?”

“Hmm?”He hummed.

“I don’t want you looking at me any differently after today”Jason said, “Don’t go easy on me and don’t let up until I say so, got it? I just want things to be normal here, as normal as they can be”

“Got it”He said and stopped squeezing Jason’s hand, “I feel better”

“Good”Jason said, but he didn’t let go and it seems like Percy wasn’t ready to either. “Talk to me”

“I don’t have much more to say”He said, “I'm still angry”

“That’s okay”Jason said.

“I’ve been to Camp Jupiter a few times and everything already seemed to hardcore”He chuckled and wiped at his eyes with his other hand, “I just wish I knew what was really going on”

“Why are you crying?”Jason asked softly and lifted Percy’s chin up, “I didn’t know you’d be this affected”

“I’m an angry crier, got it from my mom”He sniffled, “And of course I'd be affected Jay, I hate seeing people close to be hurt”

“I’m close to you?”Jason whispered.

“Of course you are Jaybird”he whispered back.

Jaybird. It had been a long time since Percy had even used or thought of the nickname but like everything else it felt right. They were so close, Jason’s fingers still tucked under Percy’s chin and he was getting lost in the rolling tides of green.

“Percy”Jason whispered.

“Yeah?”Percy breathed.

No. This was wrong.

“We um, we need to get going”He said and pulled back. “Don’t wanna leave those two alone for long, he’ll spoil her to death”

“Um yeah”Percy said thoroughly shaken out of his daze, “Literally, need anything before we go?”

“Nah”He said shaking his head, “We can fly, we’re already a little late”

“I’d rather walk”Percy said, “Don’t wanna test your father's patience too much”

“Right”He said, “I’ll meet you up there?”

“Definitely”Percy said. He waited for Jason to leave before flopping down face first on his bed and screaming.

What the hell was happening to him.

-

Later that day they didn’t end up going to the strawberry fields. They didn’t sit together at dinner and once again Jason was sleeping in Nico’s cabin. He wasn’t one for dramatics, but he needed to give himself time to cool off from whatever happened that afternoon. So he took his time, a little over a week exactly of hiding away in Nico’s cabin. He wasn’t proud of it of course, it was unlike him, but he couldn’t risk running into Percy. If he did there was no telling the way he would act, all he knew was it would be completely inappropriate for a praetor. He wasn’t even a praetor right now but old stigmas clung to his mind like glue. He still had his hoodie, wore it until the smell was gone and kept it under his pillow. The scent was intoxicating down to it’s last wear, it smelled like _him_ . Honestly like drugstore cologne,lake water and detergent but when he smelled it the thought of ocean green eyes and lips just close enough to taste filled his mind. His thoughts ran ramped, he wondered what Percy tasted like, probably the blue saltwater taffy he had ‘hiding’ in plain sight, or the burts bees chapstick he applied religiously. Jason bit his lip in shame and adjusted his shorts, sure he was alone but he couldn’t help feeling ashamed. He felt no shame in same sex attraction, he’s grown up around same sex couples his entire life. But this was _Percy_ , one of his closest friends, he shouldn’t be thinking like this.

Percy was barely out on top of it all, it wouldn’t be right to speak so soon. They were both freshly out of relationships and gods did the wounds still sting. What if his feelings were all in the wrong places? What if he was subconsciously using Percy as rebound? He wouldn’t allow himself to do that to him, not even if the gods willed it. He narrowed his eyes at the sky and shook his head, _don’t even start with me_ , he thought. He was probably just confused, his brain is probably reacting to the physical touch and affection because it’s been starved for so long. But it didn’t feel the same when Annabeth or Lou Ellen hugged him, didn’t feel right when he borrowed Leo’s hoodie the other day when he was short on time. Jason Grace was still very new to feelings so maybe everything he was feeling was a lie? Maybe Aphrodite had gotten bored and started meddling again? He frowned and shook his head, he didn’t feel like he was bewitched.

“I’m a mess”He sighed and rubbed at his face. “A complete mess”

He needed guidance, he needed someone to tell him what to do and how to do it. He’s only been down this road _once_ , and to his knowledge it was a lie. Feelings were not his strong suit, especially when he was feeling multiple at one time. It was all extremely overwhelming and he sat up trying his best to think about this rationally but he _couldn’t_ . Time and time again he tried to clear his mind so he could slow down and make some sort of plan but it was futile. He wanted Percy, he wasn’t sure in what way but he wanted him by his side. He wanted to kiss him,to touch him,to mark him, how could he feel so possessive over someone who wasn’t his? Some people go mad with grief but Jason was going mad with desire. His fingers burned to be wrapped up in the fabric of Percy’s shirt, he wanted to _cuddle_ . He didn’t even care how pathetic nor weak it sounded, he was craving it. He wanted to feel the green eyed boys arms around him and melt against his chest letting his mind finally rest from his worries. Fuck cuddling Percy just felt so _easy_ , he knew exactly what Jason wanted-what he _needed_.

His cheeks burned hot and he shifted uncomfortably, he felt nervous and giddy and everything in between. When he was with Percy he wasn’t a liar or foolish or cowardly or weak, he was just Jason. Or Jay, sometimes Jaybird. Jaybird, the pet name made his heart turn to mush and he was putty in the other boys hands. How could Percy make him feel all these things when a few years ago he thought of him no different than the rest. How could Percy turn his entire world upside in the span of a month? He sighed.

How would he leave in the fall?

“You’re thinking awfully loud”Nico said suddenly. The blonde let out a squeak and promptly rolled off the bed, gods if this was a surprise attack he’d be dead.

“W-when did you get here?”He panted.

“Like ten minutes ago”Nico shrugged, “Shadow travel is pretty quiet you know”

“Yeah I know”He sighed, “Did you need something?”

“Um this is my cabin”Nico said raising a brow, “I come in whenever I please. Besides, you need to get up and shower”

“Why?”He whined.

“Because we’re going into the city later and you’re coming”Nico said.

“Nico, no-”

“I don’t even want to hear it”Nico said, “You’ve been laying here for days, I’ve left you alone but now i’m sick of it. We brought you over early so you could relax, not spiral into insanity”

“I haven’t spiralled into insanity”He grumbled, “I enjoy my solitude”

“Jason you’re a people person”Nico said, “You don’t like being alone, I know this”

“Everyone thinks they’ve got me all figured out”He said bitterly.

“Jason what’s wrong?”Nico sighed, “Did something happen with Percy?”

“All of my emotions don’t revolve around Percy”He said, “I just miss home”

“You miss home?”Nico repeated slowly, “That’s rich”

“What?”He said defensively, “Am I not allowed to miss the place I was raised in?”

“Yeah but you don’t”Nico said shrugging his shoulders, “You’re running away from your problems”

“What-”

“You ran away from Camp Jupiter to get away from Piper”Nico continued, “And you’re running away from here because of Percy.”

Jason’s face flushed hot and he kept his eyes trained on the ground. It felt like a slap in the face.

“Stop telling me things I already know”He said.

“They’re things you know but need to accept them”Nico said, “I’m not the one here who babies you, so stop it”

“Yeah mhm like I’m just gonna stop it”He said sarcastically, “Like it’s so easy”

“Jason I don’t know what to tell you”Nico sighed, “I’m-I’m not good at being nice about advice”

“I know you aren’t”He said with a chuckle, “It’s why I didn’t ask you”

“Just shower and get dressed”Nico said shaking his head, “It’s a counselors only trip, no chaperones or anything. It’ll be fun”

“You just want an excuse to make out with your boyfriend without getting yelled at”He teased.

“Please”Nico snorted, “Like anyone could stop me from making out with Will”  
“Eww!”He said throwing a pillow, “You guys actually kiss and stuff!”

“Of course we do”Nico smirked, “And sometimes we-”

“Eww!”He screamed scrambling off the floor, “I’ll go shower, I promise!”

“Swear on styx!”Nico called after him.

“On Styx!”

-

“Everyone find a buddy!”Annabeth called out to the group, they groaned and stared at her. “I know this isn’t kindergarten but do you want to fight a monster alone or with some backup?”

The group begrudgingly ended up splitting off into pairs, all muttering something or another. She couldn’t blame them, the buddy rule was only used for campers, but after the horror she’s seen on the battlefield there was no harm in having some backup. She oversaw the process and frowned a bit, odd number, that was annoying. _I guess there’ll be one group of three_ , she thought. She barely had time to process before Will and Nico were running over practically smothering her.

“Alright so we have a plan-”

“-one that might get us killed-”

“-But it’s for the greater good-”

“Stop”She sighed, “Is this about Percy and Jason?”

“Yes”Nico sighed in relief, “How did you know?”

“Jason hasn’t been the only one moping”She said, “Percy hasn’t left me alone in _days_ ”

“Well I'm glad we’re on the same page”Will said, “They need to work out whatever's been bothering them”

“Agreed”She nodded, “There’s Jason”

He cleaned up surprisingly well. Instead of the usual shorts and shirt combo he had on a pair of blue jeans and a colorful striped shirt, even went as far as wearing jewelry. Huh, Annabeth thought. She didn’t notice that he had his ears pierced. Two tiny diamond studs stuck out slightly.

“Sorry I’m late”He said sheepishly, “Couldn’t figure out what to wear”  
“It’s alright”She waved off, “You just missed the buddy system and looks like your buddy is coming now”

Percy jogged down from the Hephaestus cabin wearing a pair of black overalls and a random aquarium shirt. The pants were obviously borrowed as they high watered a bit, but he made up for it by cuffing the ankles and brandishing blue and green socks. He had a cap on backwards over his mess of wavy hair and a backpack.

“Sorry”he mumbled, “I went in to say goodbye to Andrea and I come out wearing a completely different outfit”

“Leo put this together?”Annabeth said, “Wow, I’m impressed”

“Well he had a good model to work with”Percy smirked, “Are we doing the buddy system?”

“Mhm”She nodded, “I’m buddied with Nico and Will, and you’re buddied with Jason”

His eyes went wide.

“I’m buddied with whom?”Percy whisper shouted and leaned forward, “Please run this by me again because I specifically asked you not to!”

“It’ll be good for you Percy”She whispered back, “You said you didn’t want to lose his friendship, so don’t push him away”

“If I keep him close I’ll do something stupid”He grumbled, “I just know I-”

“Hey buddy”Jason said practically strutting over, or at least that’s how Percy saw it. He looked good, better than good actually. He looked hot, like an H&M model but less douchey and more Jason. _Fuck that didn’t make sense_ , Percy thought to himself. Oh gods, Jason was staring at him. Why was he staring at him? Percy bit his lip and fiddled with the straps on his backpack-oh fuck, Jason had spoken to him.

“Hey”He replied lamely, “I um like your earrings, didn’t know you had them pierced”

“Had my nose done for a while too,”Jason said casually, “Had to take it out when I became praetor”

Percy felt the although too familiar feeling of himself short circuiting. Of all people Jason Grace had his nose pierced? He tried to spare Annabeth a glance but she was too busy making conversation.

“Oh don’t be so surprised”Jason said punching his shoulder, “I can’t be a good boy all the time, can I?”

“U-uh no?”He stammered, was he being obvious? He was totally being obvious. This was one of the few times he would welcome some sort of attack, anything to get him out of here.

“Hey”Jason said leaning a little closer, “Did you eat today?”

“Mhm”He nodded, “Swore on styx didn’t I?”

“I was just making sure”Jason said evenly but when Percy looked up, there was a smile on his face. So Jason still cared about him, it made him feel...warm. Like a thousand hugs or a cup of hot chocolate on a cold day.

“Alright guys, the bus is here!”Annabeth shouted, “Make sure you use the restroom because there will be absolutely _no_ stops!”

Half of the group fled to random cabins and Jason pulled Percy in the direction of the bus. The budget must have gone up this year because instead of a rickety school bus it was a coach.

“Come on”He smiled, “The good seats, are in the back”

Percy couldn’t argue with that logic and let himself be pulled inside all the way to the very back. The two laughed and flopped into their seats, all of the prior tension had melted away and it felt like it was just them. No mention of the last week was made, instead they planned on how they were going to spend their time.

“We could catch a movie?”Percy suggested, “We can watch Toy Story 4?”

“I haven’t even seen the first one”He said shaking his head.

“What!”Percy exclaimed, you could practically see the exclamation points dancing across his head. “You’re lying”

“I’m not”He chuckled, “I’ve never seen Toy Story”

“Well that just won’t do”Percy said, “When you come to visit in December we’re having a movie marathon”

“You’ll still have me?”He asked, he had meant to play it off as a joke but his eyes were serious.

“Of course I will”Percy said, his were too. In a way that meant hey, no matter what happened last week I still care about you too. Jason nodded and cracked real smile, one of the wide ones that made his cheeks cherry red and his eyes a little squinty. They didn’t need to have another talk, sometimes one phrase could fix it all.

“There’s um…”Percy said, “There’s a little movie theatre by my house which is always doing reshows of the Disney classics. Maybe we could go see one and then stop by moms place for dinner?”

“Yeah”He breathed and nodded his head quickly, “Yeah i’d love to”

“Awesome”Percy said, “You can finally meet Stella”

“I’m going to legally adopt Stella and take her home with me”He joked.

“Good luck fighting my mom on that”Percy laughed, “That’s her pride and Joy”

“Yeah and so are you”He said. Percy stopped laughing and stared at him a little funny, the blonde sighed. There he goes ruining another good moment by making things serious.

“You really think so?”Percy asked softly, “You think I make her proud?”

“Of course you do”He scoffed, “you save the world, you’re training kids to do the same thing _and_ you still make it home often. As a demigod, you’re doing good and as a son you’re doing even better”

“Oh fuck off Grace”Percy said shaking his head, “You’re only buttering me up cause I’m paying”

“Who said you were paying?”He said raising a brow.

“Me, right now”Percy smirked, “It’ll be my treat”

“Oh come on-”

“No”Percy said, “Let me do this for you.”

The finality in his tone made the blonde shiver and he found himself nodding. Here he was putty in Percy’s hands all over again.

“Good”Percy said, as if nothing had happened. “I have the perfect movie in mind if they’re showing it”

-

“We’re here!”Annabeth cheered from the front of the bus. The two boys woke with a start, Jason wouldn’t admit it but he was drooling a bit. This was the best he had slept all week, Percy yawned and looked at him with a groggy smile.

“We’re already here?”He mumbled, “Could’ve sworn we were just pulling off…”

“Yeah we’re here”Jason smiled, he resisted the urge to run a hand through the mousy black locks and instead rested it on the boys shoulder. Percy yawned once again and ran a hand over his face.

“Don’t know why i’m so tired”He laughed.

 _Maybe he sleeps better with me too,_ Jason thought.

“Well we’ve got all day”Jason said, “We can go get some coffee, my treat”

“What do you know about New York coffee?”He asked raising a brow.

“Absolutely nothing, guess you’ve got to lead the way,”Jason said. Percy shook his head and lead Jason off the bus into the blinding heat. Jason squinted his eyes and immediately started to sweat, it was unnecessarily humid.

“Welcome to New York City in the dead of summer!”He exclaimed holding his arms out. He looked happy here, even with the stench of the sewers surrounding him.

“Woohoo, but can Apollo chill!”Jason shouted, “I mean damn, whenever I see him I'm gonna-”

“Woah there big guy”He chuckled, “Let’s not go cursing the gods on our day off”

Jason huffed and crossed his arms, this was worse than California. Sure it was hot at Camp Jupiter but it was never _this_ disgustingly humid.

“How did you live here?”Jason demanded, “How did you not die from heatstroke?”

“Because it’s not that hot”He shrugged, “Besides, I was always in the pool or at the beach”

“Of course you were”Jason said.

“Now come on, let’s go get _iced_ coffee you big baby”he smiled, “I know just the place”

“I’m not a baby”Jason grumbled, I’m whining a perfectly acceptable amount”

“Yeah sure”He said, “Totally acceptable for a son of Zeus”

“Jupiter!-”

“Alright listen up guys!”Annabeth exclaimed, “I want everyone back at the bus by midnight, if you fail to get here on time you will be left behind. You have no excuse to be late because there are clocks everywhere, now go have fun!”

“Let’s go”He said quickly, “That’s not the end of her speech”

“But she just said-”

“Trust me Jay, she’s not done”He said and yanked the blonde in the opposite direction. While Annabeth droned on to the group they slipped down a side street into the cool shade. Although hot and gross the city was beautiful in it’s own right, Jason had never seen so many different people. Different flags from different countries hung proudly outside of windows and rainbow banners flew. His eyes widened in amazement, so this is what the big city was like. Sure he had been in and out on quests but he’s never gotten a chance to just roam the city. They passed by a little family own bakery and he couldn’t resist stumbling a bit in his tracks, it smelled _amazing_. Percy gave him a sideways glance and smiled at the sparkle in his eyes. Affection burst through his heart in jolting spurts at the sight of the fair haired boy.

“You like it here, don’t you?”Percy said.

“New York is beautiful…”He whispered, “I don’t know how, but it’s beautiful”

“It’s why people move here so often”Percy smiled, “It’s gross and congested but little spots like this are what makes it beautiful”

“It’s also hot as sin”He snorted.

“Hot as sin?”Percy repeated, “Didn’t know you were religious”

“I’m not”He said shaking his head, “I grew up there my whole life, I had no concept of other religions. It’s just things I've picked up from other people at camp”

“I was raised catholic I think”Percy said biting his lip, “Wasn’t really mine or moms decision, it was Gabe’s. Once I got to camp half-blood I sort of lost all sense of who I was before, the religion left with that...you saying hot as sin reminded me”

“What was it like being catholic?”He asked tilting his head.

“Went to church every Sunday, went to mass on the important holidays…”Percy said and scrunched his brows together. “I remember there were these beads in the house that I loved to play with, I would roll them across my hands...Gabe used to hate me for it”

Jason smiled and brushed his hand against Percy’s. “Seems fun”

“Fun?”Percy asked, “I barely remember any of it, the older I get, the less I remember. It’s probably for the better anyways, don’t want any memories tied to Gabe”

“I can understand that”He said, “kinda why I don’t drink”

“You don’t?”Percy asked, the two started slowly moving down the street again.

“Not even during ceremonies”He said shaking his head, “Heard my mom was a drunk, just leaves a bad taste in my mouth”

“I don’t like to think about her”He continued, “I don’t know much about her but from what I’ve heard she wasn’t good to us”

“You and Thalia?”Percy asked.

“Yeah”He said, “T said she spent all of her days drinking and when dad popped in would ask him for the most random things”

“Like what?”Percy asked.

“She wanted to be a goddess”He snorted, “Wanted a fast track to Elysium and eternal beauty of all things, couldn’t stand the thought of my dad loving anyone else”

“She sounds horrible”Percy said carefully, he didn’t know if it was a sore spot or not.

“T said she was a bitch”He laughed, “I’m glad I didn’t spend too much of my life with her”

“Do you remember what she looked like?”Percy asked.

“Like me”He said softly, “T took after dad but I got a lot of my moms features, I heard she was beautiful so I’m not too bothered”

“You look like Zues”Percy offered.

“Jupiter”He corrected with a smirk, “I don’t know if I want to look like either of them”

“But you look good, you look um handsome?”Percy squeaked. Jason smiled and finally took the other boys hand in his own. Just tight enough to feel but soft enough that it didn’t feel real, like they were doing it for the first time.

“Well I think you’re pretty handsome too”He said with gentle eyes, Percy wanted to protest but how could he when Jason was looking at him like he put the stars in the sky and connected the constellations by hand? He simply nodded and squeezed the blonde’s hand a little harder pulling him onto the main street. They welcomed the busy city with open arms and laughed as they Jaywalked across the street. Well, Percy laughed. Jason was thoroughly traumatized by the event and squawked as they narrowly avoided being hit by a taxi.

“Isn’t this illegal!?”He cried.

“Only if you’re caught!”Percy retorted. “I do it all the time!”

“You’re insane”He panted, “Actually insane”

“Yeah, but you love it”Percy said with a wink. Jason’s heart thumped against his chest, fuck he did love it.

“Come on Grace, Dunkin Donuts is on the horizon!” Percy said pulling him across another busy street, but in Percy’s defense the cars were stopped in traffic. The bright orange and pink sign could be seen in the distance and Percy took off like an unleashed dog down the sidewalk letting go of Jason’s hand. The blonde gave an exclamation of terror and took off after him waving his way through unsuspecting civilians. He used the minimum of his training to volt over a bench but Percy was already across the street walking inside. Like a good citizen he waited for the walk sign and jogged across the street pushing open the double doors. 

Percy practically had his face pressed against the glass pursuing his options, he looked like a little kid. He perked up a bit when noticed Jason’s presence and eagerly pointed to a blue donut with a smaller one in the middle.

“Jay, I want this one!”Percy said pointing, “And a medium caramel swirl iced coffee”

“What’s the magic word?”He hummed, Percy looked at him with a glare, 

“Now”

“Well that’s one magic word”He grumbled and fished for his wallet. He wasn’t sure how much mortal money he had on him, but if he had calculated right from his last quest it should be enough.

“Anything else Perce?”He asked, Percy shook his head and returned to Jason’s side eagerly waiting for the order to go through. He grabbed his donut from the cashier and smiled splitting it in half handing it to Jason.

“Try it”Percy said.

“No it’s yours-”

“Come on just try it-”

“Percy no-”

“Accept my offering!”Percy said practically shoving the confectionary into Jason’s mouth. He scrunched up his face, it tasted so artificial but good? It was surprisingly good, he chewed slowly and gave Percy a short nod.

“It’s not bad”He said.

“Oh fuck off, you know it’s good!”Percy said smacking his chest.

“I will not confirm nor deny that”He said with a smirk, “But I will take another bite”

“In your dreams Grace!”Percy exclaimed turning away from the blonde’s open mouth, “not my fault your big mouth ate it all in one bite!”

“My big mouth can do a lot more than eat things in one bite”He said with a wink. It was different than his usual tone. No, this was the tone he used when he was _flirting_. Percy’s cheeks warmed at the implied innuendo and he turned away.

“One medium caramel swirl iced coffee!”The cashier said holding out the drink. Percy quickly grabbed the drink and tried to distract himself by slurping the absolute hell out of it.

“Let me try it”He said, “I’ve never been to this coffee place before”

“You’ve never been to a Dunkin?”Percy sputtered, “I literally grew up on this stuff”

“And I grew up on Starbucks”He shrugged, “It’s not common in Cali”

“Fine”Percy said handing him the cup, “But _one_ sip, this stuff is like crack”

“Which you apparently seem to be on”He mumbled and held the straw up to his lips. Once again it tasted artificial but it was still surprisingly good.

“Tastes like dessert”He said, “Not too impressive”

“You wound me Jason”Percy said dramatically, “I feel as though I might faint from grief”

“Then faint”He snorted, “I guess I’ll just wander around New York by myself”

“Fine”Percy grumbled cutting the act, “Let’s go, your refined taste buds are too good for my Dunkin”

“I’m glad you realized”He smiled, “My taste buds like expensive things”

“Well I’ll gladly cater to them”Percy said, “Now come _on_!”

“Jeez Patience is nowhere in your name”He said.

“Of course it is”Percy scoffed, “My name is Perseus Patience Jackson”

“If you say so”He grumbled letting himself get dragged to yet another location.

-

A few hours later they found themselves wandering through Percy’s neighborhood. _This was it_ , Jason thought, t _ime to face Sally_ . Of course he’s met Sally and she was quite frankly an angel but there was something just a teeny bit unnerving in her eyes, seems like Percy didn’t get all of his fight from poseidon. He wasn’t surprised in the slightest, he was quite the advocate for the notion of strong women raising strong men. But if Sally was even _half_ as terrifying as Percy could be he had reason to be afraid. 

“Do you wanna stop by moms now?”Percy asked suddenly, “I mean i’m pretty sure she’s home-”

“Yeah”He nodded, “I want to”

“Try looking a little less nervous”Percy said, “She smells fear”

Jason’s eyes widened and Percy tried his best to hold back a snicker.

“Dude it was just a joke”Percy laughed, “Try and lighten up a bit, you know my mom likes you”

“Last time she met me I was a different person”He said shaking his head, “What if she doesn’t like me now?”

“She likes you because you’re nice and a good influence”Percy said, “You basically scream ‘I’m a good boy and I follow the rules’”

Jason shivered and found himself thinking of those words under very compromising circumstances. He couldn’t help the vivid images flooding into his mind, the ones he thought about when he was alone, he ought to be ashamed of himself-

“Hello?”Percy said waving a hand over his eyes, “Earth to Jay? You still with me bro?”

“Mhm”He hummed not trusting his voice. This is why he couldn’t be alone with Percy. He knew he was being a horny teenager and he should have better self control but every word that past his pink lips went straight to the blonde’s groin. Gods, the things those lips could do to him, he bit back a groan as he thought of them pressed against his neck, marking,claiming and _taking_. He was jolted out of his daydream by a hand pressing flush against his forehead. He let out a quick exhale and felt his heart race for a very different reason.

“You feel warm”Percy frowned, “Maybe you’re coming down with something?”

“Y-yeah uh maybe”He said.

“I’m positive moms got tylenol or something cause you feel feverish”Percy said, “We’re only a block away”  
Jason just nodded and tried to keep up with Percy’s quick strides. How did he have so much energy? They’ve been walking for hours now and Percy had not once slowed down his pace, he was honestly like a little kid. He seemed so in his element in this dirty city that Jason couldn’t find it within himself to be annoyed, even when he had spent ten minutes chasing after pigeons in central park. And maybe just maybe did he want to join in a little bit, but he couldn’t. He never knew who was watching and he couldn’t risk his reputation. From the smile on Percy’s face and the way he was speeding up he knew they were close. Pretty soon his excitement couldn’t be contained in his body and he was sprinting towards an apartment complex. Jason swore under his breath and ran after him, to his surprise he was laughing. He couldn’t remember the last time he ran so fast just for fun.

Percy ran up the stairs two at a time and almost fell if Jason wasn’t there to catch him. He rang the buzzer and mumbled so quickly into the voice box the blonde was worried it wouldn’t go through. But to his surprise the door unlocked and Percy was bounding up the stairs like a hellhound completely ignoring the elevator down the hall. Jason smiled and ran up the stairs after him until they reached the apartment, the front door was covered in different shades of blue. _Of course this was where he lived_ , Jason thought. It had been a few years since his last visit but it felt familiar, he felt at ease. Percy knocked at the door like a man gone mad and Jason was slightly worried he was going to break the door down.

“I’m coming, I’m coming!”A woman’s voice called out, a few seconds later the door swung wide open. “Hello-”

“Mommy!”Percy shouted launching himself at the dark haired woman, she squealed and wrapped her arms around him.

“Aww!”Sally exclaimed, “My big baby is home!”

The two embraced for a few moments more before she let out a content sigh and smiled at Jason, “Jason Grace!”

“Hi Sally”He smiled politely.

“Come give me a hug!”She said, “God you teenagers visit once and never come by again! Have me thinking you’re dead out there!”

He went to apologize but was soon pulled into a bone crushing hug. Sally may be small but gods was she _strong_. He was bent over at an awkward angle and he was sure his arms would be bruised tomorrow, but it felt nice and warm. She hugged like Percy but with an added tenderness only a mother could provide. She pulled away and ruffled his hair causing the blonde mess to flop in his face, he was due for a haircut soon.

“Come in come in!”She said beckoning them in, “You came at a great time, Stella just woke up from her nap.”  
She shut the door behind her and Jason immediately kicked off his shoes, Percy gave him a weary glance. He shrugged, it was the respectful thing to do. Sally disappeared into a side room and remerged quickly holding a baby girl. Jason smiled and wanted to reach out for her but he knew it wasn’t his place. Percy gently grabbed the wriggling girl and cradled her close to his chest. Her eyes were still a little bleary from sleep but she smiled at him.

“Hi Stella”He said softly, “I’m back for a little bit, next time I visit promise I'll bring you lots of presents”

He gently walked them over to the couch and sat down with a caution Jason had never seen before. The little girl began to fuss and the new position and he shushed her fixing his arms so she could lay comfortably.

“She loves Percy so much”Sally whispered, “It’s like even though she barely sees him she still knows that’s her big brother”

“It’s sweet”Jason said, “I’ve never seen Percy so calm”

“He gets that way around her”Sally chuckled, “The day she was born, he refused to leave her crib. He was so paranoid something was gonna happen that he wouldn’t sleep”

“He’s a good big brother”Jason praised.

“Yeah”Sally smiled, “I’ll be in the kitchen starting on dinner, scream if you need me”  
Jason nodded and walked over to the couch sitting next to Percy who was still babbling away.

“-my friend Leo has a little sister who's five, I know she’s a little older but maybe you two could be buddies one day, huh? Leo’s dad is hephaestus, he’s really nice and he makes pretty things. Maybe when you’re a little older I'll have them make some toys for you”He said.

“You’re absolutely whipped Perce”Jason said softly, “And for good reason, she’s precious”

“She’s such an easy baby”He said happily, “She rarely cries and when she does, it's just for the usual reasons, she’s not collicky or anything.”

“She’s so cute”Jason said, “Look at her little feet, she’s so small too”

“She’s pretty big actually”He chuckled, “most babies her age are smaller”

“Well maybe it’s just been a while since i’ve seen a baby”Jason said, “She looks like Sally”

“Thank you! At least someone agrees!”Sally exclaimed from the kitchen.

“How do you manage to kiss ass all the time?”He said shaking his head,

“I guess I'm just good at saying the right things”Jason shrugged.

Stella let out a little hiccup and Percy immediately sat her upright on his knee and patted her back. She let out another tiny hiccup and Jason was in love, he wasn’t sure if it was the way Percy handled her or if it was the baby fever but he just felt warm. He knew exactly what to do and how to do it, if that didn’t scream attractive than Jason didn’t know what did.

“I thought leaving home was hard when it was just mom”He said, “But now that Stella’s around I never want them out of my sight. Paul is a good man I can admit that, but if anything ever happened to these two I would lose myself…”

“Sally is a strong woman,”Jason said, “She’s strong and she’s _smart_ , if any mortal can keep themselves safe from the gods it’s her.”

The blonde could tell Percy had more to say but he didn’t, so they sat in comfortable silence. It felt nice to be in a home, sure Jason has stayed at plenty of houses but they never quite had this feeling. It felt as if Apollo had taken permanent reign over the place making sure a single corner never fell into darkness. His vocabulary was extensive, his tutors made sure of it but the only way he could describe it was _warm_ and _home_. He even picked his brain for words in latin but no single word could match up to how he was feeling, to how he felt seeing Percy cuddled up with Stella. How he longed for that in his future, how he longed for Percy in his future. Hell demigods weren’t even promised tomorrow but wherever the fates took him he wanted Percy to be there. His mind fluttered to his upcoming graduation, dressed in white and holding the almost archaic diploma he’s seen plastered amongst the great halls. He could see Percy in the audience, draped in the finest blue silk and smiling at him with pride. Jason Grace was falling, and he was falling hard.

“Do you wanna hold her?”He asked suddenly. Jason snapped out of his daydream and fixed his arms in the way he’s been routinely instructed. But he guessed a field trip to New Rome’s hospital didn’t prepare him for this. Percy laughed and shook his head quickly.

“She’s not a newborn anymore dude”He said, “You don’t have to hold her like that anymore, just grab her”

“W-well it’s what you did!”Jason protested.

“That was called bonding”He said raising a brow, “Honestly just grab her and place her in your lap”

“Okay…”Jason said wearily and did as told. Stella gave no more than a little cry of protest before she was seated on Jason's thigh. She scrunched up her face and looked at him curiously. He didn’t want to move, he didn’t even want to breathe.

“She’s not made of glass, Jay. She’s a baby”He said calmly, “She won’t break”

“Oh so now you’re the baby expert?”Jason said and bounced his leg gently.

“I’m good with babies”He shrugged, “All types of babies, especially dolphins”

“You’ve held a baby dolphin?”Jason asked.

“Of course not”He scoffed, “they’re way too big to hold, but they love to play and who am I to say no?”

Jason looked at Stella and frowned, “I don’t think she likes me, she’s not doing anything”

“Because she’s a _baby_!”He laughed, “Gods Grace you really don’t have much experience with children”

Jason couldn’t help but to feel embarrassed, it wasn’t necessarily his fault but in some ways he still felt inferior. This had come naturally to Percy, he would make a good father and Jason would just be afraid of breaking them his entire life. His shoulders sagged and he let out a tiny sigh of shame, he failed. He was barely eighteen yet, he didn’t have to be thinking about this but he’s had it set in his head since he could remember. He would have a big house,a nice wife and plenty of children running around. But maybe now he wanted a nice apartment,a snarky husband and plenty of children? He shook his head and continued bouncing Stella, the mere thought of marriage was going to send him into a sparking fit. He had just discovered his feelings and he was already thinking of marriage and children, what was wrong with him?

“You’re doing it again Jay”He said, “What’s on your mind? You’ve been spacey all day”

“It’s nothing”Jason said, “Just a little tired”

“I may not be a child of Apollo but even _I_ could tell that was a lie,”He said. “Come on, I thought we said no more secrets?”

“Thinking about the future”Jason said, it wasn’t fully a lie. “Who I'm going to spend it with and stuff like that”

“Is it because you miss Piper?”He asked.

“No”Jason said shaking his head, “If I'm being honest I don’t think I ever truly saw Piper in my future”

“What do you mean?”He asked, “Didn’t you two swear on Styx?”

“We did”Jason sighed, “But I think I was a little blinded by love to even think of a future. I took her for granted and kind of just expected her to be there, I never really thought of any scenarios with her or anything”

“I never think about my future”He said, “I don’t want to get my hopes up or jinx anything”

“Isn’t that sad”Jason chuckled, “We can’t even think about having a future without feeling like we’re jeopardizing it”

“It’s the demigod life and we’re past due”He grimaced, “So I choose not to think about it, I know it’ll come one of these days-”

“Hey”Jason scolded and covered Stella’s ears, “Don’t say that. I thought we both agreed that we’re not dying until we’re good and ready!”

“Like you’d fight the fates”He said crossing his arms.

“I’d fight my father without weapon or armor for you”Jason said seriously, then immediately turned his eyes towards the ceiling. “Do not get any funny ideas”

“Well then, I’d take on Cerberus for you”He said.

“Oh please, Cerberus is a big drooling push over”Jason waved off, “I’d swim in the open ocean for you”

“I’d fly halfway across the world for you”He said inching closer.

“I’d do eternity in the fields of punishment”Jason said.

“I’d give up riptide”

“I’d give up gladius”

“I’d kill for you”

“I already have”Jason whispered, the two were so close. “So can we agree we’re both not going until we’re good and ready?”

“A-agreed”

Stella whined and wriggled on Jason’s lap, his eyes widened. How could he forget he was holding a baby?

“I uh, I’ll take her!”He said and quickly plucked the baby off of Jason’s lap and whisked her into another room. He let his head fall into his hands with a thump and groaned, he was slowly but surely losing control of himself. He began to wonder if cupid had anything to do with it because Jason always thought rationally. He always had a plan, and just a few minutes ago he was ready to throw caution to the wind and kiss Percy on his mother's couch. He needed to calm down—no matter of fact he needed to cool down. He felt hot all over, but not in a bad way. Desire coursed through his veins and now he found himself wondering how they were going to get through the rest of the day. Percy emerged from the room around ten minutes later wearing a completely different outfit and a grim face.

“Diaper explosion. Please don’t ask about it”He said, “We should get going, the movie I want to see starts soon”

“Okay”Jason said, so this is how they were going to play it. A few moments of awkward tension and then ultimately forgetting that it even happened. Well if it suited Percy, he would have to grow accustomed to it too. They said their goodbyes to Sally and before Jason could flee the apartment she grabbed him by the sleeve of his shirt.

“Thank you”She said, her eyes soft and kind, “Be good to him”

“I-I..uh we’re…”He tried to explain but all he could say was, “Yes, ma'am, I will”

-

Percy’s house must have been a time vortex because when they stepped back outside the sun was setting on the city. They held hands, but only so Jason could keep up as they walked the few blocks towards the theatre. The blondes head was spinning and he was envious at how calm Percy seemed, it didn’t seem fair. He gripped Percy’s hand tighter trying to expel his nerves, the exact opposite happened when the green eyed boy laced their fingers together. He was staring, Jason knew he was but he kept his eyes trained on his feet. He heard a faint sigh and tried to push down the disappointment in his chest. He wanted Percy to _push_ , to explicitly let him know that these confusing feelings weren’t in vain. But all he got was a sigh.

The two didn’t talk the entire way there and the blonde felt restless. The entire walk he racked his mind for conversation starters but came up short every time. He wanted to talk, he didn’t want things to be awkward. Once they entered the theatre Percy was still as quiet as before simply digging through his pockets for his wallet. As time passed the frustration only increased and Jason laid a hand on his shoulder.

“I can pay”He said.

“No”Percy all but growled taking off his backpack, “I gotta do it”

“Why?”He asked, “Money isn’t a big deal-”

“It is to me.”Percy said, “Gotta show you I care. I can’t say fancy words or anything but this is the least I can do for you”

The blonde was silent. After a few moments of digging through his backpack he let out a sound of triumph and pulled out the black wallet.

“Get anything you want”Percy said handing him two twenties, “I’ll go buy tickets”

“Well what do you want?”He asked but the boy was already walking towards the booth.

“Anything blue!”

-

“Is that all you wanted?”Percy asked quietly as they got situated in their seats, “You could’ve gotten more, I don’t mind”

He seemed nervous, or at least unsettled.

“I’m good Percy”He said with a nod, “Thank you”

But he wanted to say so much more. _I know you care dumbas_ s or _you don’t need to impress me with money, just be yourself._ But maybe it was more than that, maybe it was more than money.

The trailers soon started and they found themselves banting quietly pointing out which movies looked interesting and which ones sucked.

“Who’s the elephant?”He asked.

“That’s dumbo”Percy said, “Dude even Nico knows about dumbo and he was born at like the beginning of time-”

“The 1930’s-”He muttered.

“-And he’s still more up to date than you”Percy smirked, “Maybe that movie marathon needs to come sooner than I thought”

“I’ll find the time in my schedule”He smirked in return.

“You sound so pretentious”Percy said rolling his eyes.

“I’m surprised you know what pretentious means”He said.

“You’d be surprised as the things I know flyboy”Percy said giving him a once over, but he wanted to cringe. It wasn’t supposed to come out so.... _sensual_.

“Maybe I wouldn’t be so surprised if you told me,”He said.

“Maybe I wouldn’t have to tell you if you weren’t so stubborn”Percy snapped, he hadn’t meant for that to come off so rude either but he was frustrated! He had been laying out all the signs as carefully as he could but Jason just wasn’t taking the bait. He wanted to stop being so impulsive for a change and do things Jasons way but quite frankly it was _boring_. The gentle caresses,the sweet words spoken only after dark, he was going to explode. He didn’t apologize, he just slumped back in his seat and waited for the movie to start.

“The Little Mermaid?”Jason asked.

“It was my favorite as a kid so I wanted to share it with you”He sighed, “But if this is dumb we can always find somet-”

“It’s not dumb”Jason said firmly, “I wanna watch it. Now hush, I think it’s starting”

The movie continued in remote silence except for some tasteful commentary from Jason including, “Why did she want to come here so bad? It’s not even that great” and “She has _how_ many sisters?”

Although slightly annoyed at the interruptions Percy was pleased he was following along. Maybe when Stella is older they’ll come see it again, dress her in one of the cute costumes and parade her around the theatre. He gripped Jason's hand and laced their fingers together giving it a little squeeze. Demigods aren’t promised tomorrow, he thought, gotta act today or i’m gonna regret it.

And Percy Jackson already had a list of regrets, longer than most his age. Gods be damned if he was going to add this to the list.

“You okay?”The blonde whispered.

“No”Percy said, his heart raced against his chest. “I’m not okay”

“How can I help?”He asked and brought his hand up to cup Percy’s cheek, “You’re warm, and shaking”

“I think it’s just...I might be....”Percy said pathetically, “Fever?”

“Well we can go back to Sally’s early”He suggested, “Didn’t you say she has tylenol?”

“Mhm”Percy hummed, desire bubbled through his veins. Pouring and saturating his bloodstream until he couldn’t take it anymore. His leg bounced wildly and he squeezed Jasons’ hand with determination.

“hmm?”He hummed.

“Please don’t be mad at me,”Percy said, sadness tinging his tone. In all honesty he wanted to cry but it was all too much and he needed to touch, to be touched.

“For what?”The blonde asked.

“For this”

The dark haired boys lips brushed against the blondes, once, then twice, then once more to see if Jason wanted this. He wanted to protest, wanted to talk about it first, but maybe it was time to do things Percy’s way and just _do_ . His eyes fluttered shut and he took initiate squeezing Percy’s hand and leaned into the kiss, trying to convey everything he wanted to say with his body. _Yes I want this and yes I want you, gods do I want you,_ he would say. His hand that wasn’t squeezing tight crept up Percy's thigh using it as a base to ground himself so he didn’t fly away from the feeling. In all honesty, he was a little worried he would start floating. His lungs protested the lack of air but he ignored them and pulled Percy closer, breathing could wait just as long as he’s been waiting for this. He only pulled away when he felt thoroughly dizzy and only partially satisfied, now that he’s had a taste he didn’t know if he could ever be satisfied.

“Did we just do that?”He whispered.

“Yeah”Percy chuckled and licked his lips. “Yeah, we did”

“Is it bad that I want to do it again?”He asked. 

“No”

-

The two stumbled through Sally’s front door and didn’t even bother to say hello before running off to Percy’s room. With the door shut tightly behind him Jason was slammed up against the wall just hard enough that it stung. Whatever Percy was holding back in the movie theater came rushing over them like a rolling tide. He pinned Jason's hips to the door and immediately attached his lips to the blondes neck. He sucked at the skin just below his collarbone and relished in the taste. Jason let out a quiet moan and gripped at Percy’s shoulders digging his nails into the soft flesh.

“Wanted you for so long”Percy mumbled against his chest, “Was driving me crazy”

“No kidding”He panted, “Should’ve told me”

“You should know by now I don’t do talking”Percy smirked and started trailing his kisses downwards. “I see what I want, and I go for it”

Jason shuddered and felt his knees starting to give out. If Percy didn’t have such a tight grip on him he would have surely collapsed and melted into a puddle of feelings and hormones. He moaned again and his thoughts were racing, how far were they going to go? He was a virgin, should he mention that he was a virgin? Was _Percy_ even a virgin? Would it kill the mood?

“I um...I’m…”He tried to choke out but instead whimpered as Percy bit the shell of his ear,

“A virgin?”Percy supplied, “I figured”

He wanted to be offended but his entire life pretty much seemed to scream straight laced on a short leash. Sex was for marriage, at least that’s how Juno put it but how could he wait when just touching felt this _good_?

“Aw you’re cute when you’re fucked out”Percy smirked, “Don’t worry Jay, i’ll take good care of you”

“Promise?”He found himself saying. Percy tilted his chin up so they were eye to eye and placed a gentle kiss on his lips. 

“I promise”Percy whispered, his eyes were gentle. “I swear on the river Styx,I swear on my father—I swear on all gods Roman and Greek that I'll take good care of you”

“Your fingers aren’t crossed…”He said more to himself than anyone else. Percy held both of his hands up in front of him and wiggled his fingers.

“I will never deceive you Jason, my word is good as gold because I don’t make promises often…”Percy said. And they both knew why, Bianca. He promised,he tried and he failed.

“I will always take care of you”Percy continued and started to roll his hips forward gently, almost testing the waters, “You’re my best friend, one of the only few people I trust-”

He broke off his monologue with a groan and dropped his head into the crook of Jason's neck at the new sensation, fuck being with a boy felt way different then he’d expected. Sure he’d fooled around with Leo but they’ve never gotten this close, and there wasn’t anything to it but lust. 

“-fuck where was I?”he mumbled, “I just...we both know I’m not good with words”

“But you are”Jason panted, “you are good with words, fuck _please_ keep talking to me”

The praise sent a wave of arousal through Percy’s body and he rutted against Jason harder.

“How good Grace?”He growled.

“S-so good”The blonde stuttered, “Fuck Percy please!”

“Begging for something you don’t even know”He mused, “adorable”

He threaded a hand through golden locks and tugged gently forcing jason to look at him, “What do you want Grace?”

“Fuck, I-”jason started and cut himself off with a moan. Percy’s smirk was almost lethal.

“Almost didn’t believe you liked the pain so much”He whispered, “Had to test it for myself. Isn’t this something, huh? The blushing virgin, the noble praetor falling apart from my touch”

Jason nudged his head against Percy’s hand and _whined_. He wanted him to pull harder, wanted to feel the pain searing through his skull. Through the haze of pleasure he mumbled about the bed and Percy gladly dragged him over to it. He fell back on the bed with an oof and was immediately pounced on, Percy's legs folded on either side of his hips straddling him. Jason couldn’t help but think how beautiful he looked like this, sure he looked sinister from the way he was baring his teeth but it made him feel wanted. Percy wanted him, just as bad as he did.

“Say stop at any time and I will”He panted and licked his lips, “We’ll take this as slow as you want, it's your call”

And fuck him for saying he wasn’t good with words because he was currently saying all the right things. Jason nodded and looped his arms around Percy’s neck pulling him in for another kiss. Gods he was sure that he would never get tired of this, kissing boys was different but this wasn’t just any boy, this was Percy. He couldn’t wrap his mind around the fact even if he tried. Earlier today he was avoiding him like the plague and here he was laid out on his bed being kissed breathless. Fuck, was Percy a good kisser, Jason has barely seen him breathe. The older boys hips started rolling again and all of Jason’s thoughts vanished from his head and all he could think about was how _good_ this felt. 

Gentle hands reached up to take off his glasses and a thumb swiped the corner of his eye, fuckwas he crying? Was he one of those people? Percy placed his glasses to the side and leaned down kissing the spots where the few tears had felt.

“Feeling overwhelmed?”He asked, “If you wanna stop-”

“Gods no don’t stop”Jason almost shouted and immediately covered his own mouth.

“I haven’t even given you reason to scream yet”He chuckled, “A screamer _and_ a crier, I’m a lucky man”

“Shut up”Jason groaned and rolled his head to the side, he couldn’t believe Percy was choosing now of all times to tease him.

“Look at me”He said tilting the blonde’s head straight, “It doesn’t bother me, it’s fucking hot”

With the phrase he grinded deeper and tightened his grip on Jason's chin so tight that he was sure it would bruise. The blonde could only nod and moan at the sensation.

“I like seeing your eyes”He panted rolling his hips faster, “Favorite color, looks so pretty Jaybird”

Jason gripped and Percy’s hips and tried to pull him closer but was ultimately disappointed when the pleasure stopped altogether.

“I control the pace”He said, “I just want you to lay here and take it, can you do that for me baby?”

 _Baby_. Gods this boy was going to kill him. He nodded and Percy smiled wickedly before doubling down on his efforts and kissing the blonde bruised. The final string of his resolve snapped. The desire he’s been feeling for the past year all came to a steep head and instead of backing off the cliff. Jason jumped. He bucked his hips up against Percy’s and moaned shamelessly into his mouth, he didn’t care who heard him, he needed Percy to know he was enjoying this.

“Pants”Jason panted once he got the strength to pull away, “Pants off”

“Are you sure?”he asked, “Do you really want to-

“I will create a storm strong enough to wipe out North America if pants are not off in the next five seconds!”He snapped and his voice was raw. Percy stared at him in awe before processing the threat and unbuttoning his jeans. Jason did the same freeing himself of his constraints and kicking them off the bed. He wanted to touch but Percy was one step ahead of him and pinned his arms over his head.

“No touching”he smirked. Jason kicked his legs and instead tried to rut against Percy’s bulge, why wasn’t he doing anything?

“Perce come on!”Jason said, “I’m going to kill you!”  
“Not when i’ve got your hands”He smirked.

“I’ll fry you”Jason threatened.

“Then you won’t cum”he laughed, “You need to learn some patience, what happened to my good boy?”

Jason shuddered at the words but kept his eyes narrowed, “He left”

“Well when he comes back”He drawled and gripped Jason’s wrists tighter, “You can cum”

“You’ve got some nerve”Jason huffed, “I have plenty of patience”

“Except when I do this”He shrugged and carded a hand through the blonde’s hair pulling gently, “Or this”he continued pressing a kiss to the corner of Jason’s lips, “Then you’re putty in my hands”

“Do you get off on teasing me?”Jason huffed.

“Mmm part of me does”He pondered, “But part of me just thinks it’s funny”

There he was, even when things were hot and heavy Percy still found the time to be an asshole.

Jason gave an unimpressed glare and bucked his hips a second time eliciting a hiss from the brunet.

“You’re testy”He said raising a brow.

“And you’re annoying”Jason grunted.

“I never said I didn’t like testy”He said and surprisingly flipped the two over. Jason fell flat against his chest and quickly scrambled to a sitting position trying to save face. Percy simply placed his hands behind his back and stared.

“Take what you want Jay”He said, “I won’t even hold your hands down”

“Is this a trick?”Jason asked in a cautious tone.

“This is whatever you want it to be”He said, “Come on Jay, take.”

The command in his final word didn’t go unnoticed but Jason nodded and began to rock his hips. He moaned softly and the contact and pressed his hips down harder, fuck did it feel good. Percy hummed from underneath him and kept his hands at his side, Jason furrowed his brows at that but continued. He continued on for a few minutes of uninterrupted grinding before he snapped.

“What’s wrong with you?”Jason blurted out, “Why aren’t you...well you know!”

“Taking control?”He supplied, “Because it seems like you wanted to do it all by yourself”

Jason gripped Percy’s hands blindly and placed them on his hips, “You’re holding back on me”

“Because you wanted to be a brat”He teased rolling them back over.

“I was being a brat? Well you weren’t give me what I wanted- _oh_ ”Jason moaned and gripped the sheets of the bed.

“Not giving you what you wanted huh?”He said smugly, “I think I am”

“S-shut up!”Jason said being jostled by the pivoting of Percy’s hips, “Just make me cum”

“Mmm but what if I don’t?”He mused.

“But what if you _do_ ”Jason stressed.

“Good point”He said and doubled down on his efforts. Fuck Jason was tired but it seemed like Percy could’ve kept their little game up all night. Honestly where was he storing all of this energy?

He was close, he had been close for the past twenty minutes but gods did Percy like to play dirty. Tiny moans slipped past his lips and his eyes fluttered shut, he felt hot, his whole body felt hot.

“Look at me”he said patting Jason's cheek, “I wanna see you”

“I can barely see you”Jason said, “Unfair”

“Your glasses were fogging up”He said and stopped himself as he reached for the band of the blondes briefs, “Fuck Jace, do you trust me?”

“Surprisingly, with my life”Jason muttered, “But why?”

“I wanna try something”He said and licked his lips, “But our boxers need to come off”

“Okay”Jason shrugged and lifted his hips up.

“Okay?”He practically squawked.

“I’m a virgin, Percy”Jason said pulling his briefs down around his ankles, “Not prude”

“Well fuck me”He mumbled and pulled off his own flinging them across the room.

“Nah, I think I want you to fuck me”Jason said and Percy choked.

“You’re going to be the death of me”He said.

“You’re not dying until I get to come”Jason huffed and gave his hips an experimental thrust. Without the barrier of cloth it felt unworldly, his lips parted and he let out a low groan.

“You’re so pretty”He whispered. He couldn’t bring himself to do anything else but stare and Jason squirmed.

“Guess I have to do this myself”Jason sighed and reached for Percy’s cock. The green eyed boy bit his lip hard and moaned at the unfamiliar touch. Sure he’s been touched by other people but it was different. Jason’s hands were _rough_ and stroking him with so much care that if he wasn’t ready to burst his heart might. He rolled his eyes at the notion and tried to clear his head, he was getting to sappy for his own liking.

“Am I doing good?”Jason asked, he slid his thumb over the slit gently and Percy hissed bucking his hips into the blonde’s hand. All he could do was nod and grip onto Jason’s shoulder, fuck it felt _good_. The blonde gave one of his signature all teeth smile and continued fully wrapping his hand around Percy’s length. Precrum dribbled down his shaft and he squeezed his eyes shut trying to focus on anything but the hand around his cock. He didn’t want to cum yet, gods that would be so embarrassing—but it seemed Jason had other plans. He moved his hand faster and tilted his head up mouthing at Percy’s neck, he wanted everyone to know who he belonged to. His other hand moved slowly around his own shaft as he tried to ingrain this moment to memory, just in case it was another fluke and they never spoke up it again. Percy let out a surprised yelp as Jason bit down on his collarbone with an almost primal lust, gods were his teeth sharp. The blonde shifted the two on their sides and threw a leg over Percys’ hip for leverage before going back to Percy’s neck. He never knew that hickey’s could feel so fucking good, especially when Jason nibbled at the spot behind his ear he almost screamed. Percy wasn’t a screamer, he wasn’t even a moaner, what was this boy doing to him? Jason let out a deep grunt and moved his hand even faster across Percy’s length as he thrusted into his own hand. The brunet threw his head back against the pillow and tried to squirm away from the pleasure but Jason kept him locked in place as he chased his own high.

“F-fuck!”Percy gasped arching his back off the bed, “Fuck, gonna-”

Jason smashed their lips together and in a frenzy of moving limbs and clashing teeth Percy came with a breathless scream staining Jason’s shirt white. Before he could catch his breath Jason’s legs were trembling around him and little sparks of electricity danced across the room as he cried out his name. Just before he came Percy saw the blonde’s eyes glow a blinding blue before he shut them and turned his face towards Percy’s chest. He gave him a few minutes to catch his breath before the teasing continued.

“So do you always spark when you cum?”He smirked.

“Only when it’s that good”Jason mumbled against Percy’s chest, “Fuck that was good…”

“Was it worth the teasing?”He asked.

“Never”Jason said, “I’ll kill you if you ever do that again”

“You liked it”He smirked.

“I was horny and vulnerable”Jason complained, “I wasn’t thinking straight”

“I don’t think you were thinking _straight_ to begin with”He said wiggling his brows. 

“Really?”Jason whined, “A queer pun right now? Percy ‘m _tired_ ”

“What better time than now?”He asked, “When were you gonna tell me?”

“Sexuality isn’t a big deal at camp jupiter so I never thought of it”Jason said, “Was never a priority”

“I always thought you were straight”He mused, “Glad to say I was wrong”

“Mhm”Jason hummed, “Take your shirt off, is sticky…”

“You just want me naked”He said.

“Yup”Jason yawned pulling his own shirt over his head, “You got me”

Percy mimicked the blonde’s actions and stripped his own shirt off pulling Jason close to his chest.

“Aww”he said carding his fingers through blonde hair, “I really did a number on you”

“I did a number on myself”Jason snorted, “You humped me for half an hour…”

“Still had you begging”He said. Jason nodded in agreement and the two laid in silence for what felt like an eternity before Percy spoke.

“You know we’re going to have to talk about this at some point”He said quietly, “I didn’t want this to be like a one time thing”

“Can we talk later?”Jason yawned, “ ‘m so tired…”

“Of course”he said trying to push down the rush of anxiety, “It’s still kind of early, we can nap before dinner”

“Mmm dinner…”Jason mumbled closing his eyes, a few seconds later they shot wide open. “Fuck! Your mom is still here!”

Percy tried to stifle his laughter, but failed. “Dude, it’s okay-”

“Oh my gods what is she going to think of me?”He panicked, “I’m going to be in so much trouble! _We’re_ going to be in so much trouble, Percy how could you-”

“Jay”He said shaking the blonde’s shoulders, “It is okay, she knows the drill”

“There’s a _drill_?”Jason hissed.

“I’m a teenage boy”He said raising a brow, “If I bring someone back to my room it either means evacuate the premises or blast the radio”

“I don’t hear any music”Jason huffed.

“Meaning she probably left”He chuckled, “Which means that you have nothing to worry about”

“I...fine”Jason sighed and settled back against percy’s chest, “but if we get lectured, you’re taking the blame”

“I wouldn’t have it any other way”He smiled and wrapped his arms around the blonde’s chest. There were definitely things that still needed to be said, things that needed to be cleared up but Jason was tired and Percy was more than content to lay there and hold him.

-

Jason immediately knew something was wrong when he woke up to sunshine on the back of his neck. He blinked an eye open to see a blurry expanse of tan skin littered with purple bruises, and there was singing. Well it was more of a humming coming through a crack in the blue wooden door. The next thing he noticed was the bed, he was in an actual bed. Not the hard mattresses they tried to play off as beds at camp but it was a real bed, with duvets and matching pillow cases. The memories came flooding back from last night and he smiled, until he didn’t. They were still at Percy’s house,they had never woken up for dinner and they didn’t get back on the bus at midnight. He just shook his head and snuggled back into Percy’s chest, the damage was already done, might as well enjoy these last moments of peace. This action caused Percy to stir and soon enough he was awake. He rubbed at his eyes and wordlessly let go of Jason’s waist to hand the blonde his glasses who replied with a nod. Neither spoke as they tried to blink the sleep from their eyes and separate dreams from reality. Maybe dreams did come true, maybe the odd shooting star worked his magic because all Jason had been wishing for his entire life was a home. And maybe a home didn’t need to have four sturdy walls and a roof to keep him safe and warm, maybe all it needed was a gentle smile and a promise kept until forever.

“Why are you smiling so hard?”Percy asked, “It’s too early to be happy”

“I was just thinking,”he said.

“About last night?”Percy asked.

“About everything...”He said.

“Well I can’t read minds so I guess you’ll just have to tell me,”Percy said.

“I know we’re doing things pretty backwards but I like you Percy”He said, “I like you a lot. I left camp so early because I felt like I was missing something and I just knew it was at camp half-blood. Praise,validation,friends I don’t know what I was looking for...but I think it was you”

“You think the gods willed it?”Percy asked quietly, “You know the whole ‘everything happens for a reason’ thing?”

“Fate?”He said, “I mean maybe...”

“Juno’s blessing”Percy said suddenly.

“What?”He asked tilting his head.

“That day when your dad came to visit you in my cabin. You said something about Juno giving you her blessing”Percy said, “Was that blessing for _us?_ ”

“Oh fuck”He groaned, “I think it was. She’s a goddess, _of course_ she knew Piper and I broke up and _of course_ she knew I would end up at camp with you”

“So the gods _were_ meddling?”Percy chuckled.

“We get absolutely no privacy”He grumbled, “I need to have a talk with her”

“At least she was subtle about it”Percy said, “You know, she gave us some time to figure it out. It’s pretty nice of her actually”

“Don’t defend her!”He snapped.

“Hey”Percy said, “I know it’s fucking weird but you’ve gotta remember that this is our lives. The gods are always meddling whether we want them to or not”

“Yeah you’re right”He sighed, “Just after what happened with Pipes i’m a little touchy about gods meddling”

“I meant everything I said last night,”Percy said, “If this was some trance we would know, especially if it was Aphrodite’s doing because she is not subtle at all.”

Jason chuckled and rubbed his eyes because gods was that the truth.

“I’m not too happy about godly interventions either but...i’m willing to take this as a friendly push if you are”Percy finished.

“I am”

The minute he said those words the room took on a soft glow. A single golden apple materialized on the bed in front of them. Percy gently reached out and grabbed the apple rolling it back and forth in his hand, it was pretty, too pretty. He looked at Jason then back at the apple a few times before he had finally processed what was going on. Apple. Golden Apple. Hera. Queen of gods,birth and _marriage_. This wasn’t your usual blessing, this was a wedding blessing.

“Seems like Hera’s looking for a son-in-law”he said with a weak chuckle. Jason eyed the apple as well before shaking his head.

“She didn’t”Jason groaned, “I swear she actually hates me”

“Nah I think she’s growing on me”He said with a smirk, “This kind of humor is right up my ally”

“Embarrassing me is right up your ally”Jason corrected.

“Isn’t that what I said?”He asked.

“You’re annoying”Jason said and rolled away from him, “Gimmie my virginity back”

“Don’t think it works like that”He joked with a certain strain in his voice. Jason rolled back over and pulled at his bottom lip with a sympathetic click.

“Too soon?”Jason said softly. 

“Maybe?”The green eyed boy squeaked. Jason cupped his cheek and pressed a gentle kiss to his lips. Nothing serious, more of a greeting, like a _hey hello I still very much enjoy doing this._ When he pulled away the brunets eyes were still fluttered shut almost as if he were trying to savor the taste.

“I don’t regret it Percy”Jason said. There was no room for argument in his tone. Percy simply nodded and tried to lean again, only to be ultimately disappointed when Jason turned his face.

“Your breath stinks”Jason said, “That kiss was to prove a point.”

“Damn, I guess things really aren’t going to change”He mumbled and rolled out of bed.

“Hey!”Jason laughed, “On top of whatever this is you’re still my best friend.”

“And what is that supposed to mean?”He asked folding his arms.

“That I'm still going to tell it how it is”Jason said, “Also we should probably put clothes on at some point”

Percy looked down at his naked body and felt a blush spread across the expanse of his chest tinging his tanned skin red. One hand flew to cover himself while the other threw open his closet looking for a pair of boxers. The blonde got out of bed and stalked over to Percy in all of his naked glory pressing against his back. He could feel the shudder in his own chest as he pressed a gentle kiss the tanned boys shoulder.

“I never said I didn’t like the view…”

“I’ve created a monster”He said and pulled out two pairs of briefs.

“Not created”The blonde said grabbing a pair and sliding them on, “Awoken”

“Potato tomato”He said sliding on a pair of his own, “either way you’re a horndog”

“I’m not going to disagree with you,”Jason said with a shrug.

“You’re shameless”He said.

“No”Jason said, “I’m young and horny and I can finally do stuff without getting brutally interrupted”

“Hera really-”

“Every single time I tried”Jason said, “There’d either be a storm, or my tutor would find us or they’d simply disappear!”

“That’s rough”He said.

“You’re telling me,”Jason said, “Word got around pretty soon that my godly step-mom was keeping me from getting some so people stopped trying”

“That’s a different level of helicopter parent”He said, “I’m sorry dude”

“I guess in her own twisted way it was to keep me from turning into my father”Jason said, “Ya know, sleeping around and not knowing how to keep a relationship”

“There’s always a method to the madness”He sighed, “But now you don’t have to worry about that”

“Why?”Jason asked.

“Because we’re definitely going to make up for lost time”

-

“Please Nico!”Percy exclaimed, “I’ll do anything!”

The three of them-well four counting Will- had been iris messaging for over half an hour trying to secure a way back home. Jason Grace may be stubborn but when he wanted to, Nico took the cake.

“I don’t want _anything_ ”Nico said, “I just want to know why you two missed the bus”

“I told you”He said, “Jason and I went to catch a movie that lasted way longer than expected. We came back to my mom's apartment and crashed. Her,Paul and Stella had gone out to eat so I expected them to wake us up when they got back”

“Is he lying Will?”Nico asked nudging the blonde to his right. Will processed the statement and had the decency to flash an apologetic smile before shaking his head.

“He’s not telling the whole truth”he said. Nico gave a satisfied huff and sat back in his seat, crossing his arms.

“Then I'll wait until I get the whole truth”Nico said. Percy let out an annoyed huff before storming out of the room and slamming the door behind him. Jason let out a sigh and flinched at the muffled scream coming from the bedroom.

“Is it that serious?”Nico said raising a brow, “I just want the truth”

“You of all people should know the truth could be hard sometimes”He said shaking his head, “Why are you pushing him so hard?”

“To see if he did anything stupid and he’s lying about it”Nico deadpanned.

“Well he didn’t”He said, “I was with him the entire time yesterday”

“He’s telling the truth”Will said.

“Fine then”Nico said, “You tell me what happened”

“We snuck off from the group,walked around the city,got dunkin donuts,visited his mom,saw a movie and crashed at his house”He said.

“He’s telling the truth,”Will said and gave Nico a look, “the entire truth”

“Well that doesn’t make any sense”Nico said, “That’s what Percy told me the first time”

“Well how do you determine these things in the first place?”He asked/

“Well i’m not as good as others in my cabin”Will admitted, “But I pick up on shame and guilt. Percy seemed guilty, Jason doesn’t”

“Nico there are some things going on right now that you don’t understand”He said carefully, “Please just come get us, _please_ ”

“I..fine”Nico huffed, “Give me a few, I’ll be there soon”

The call immediately disconnected and Jason huffed running a hand through his hair. _Can’t ever have more than one peaceful day_ he thought as he walked into the bedroom. _Someone’s always starting something._

“Get your things”He said, “Nico said he’ll be here soon”

“He’s coming?”Percy chuckled darkly, “Didn’t he want to interrogate me some more?”

“He doesn’t know”He said softly, “None of them know P, this is all some big misunderstanding”

“No one knows”Percy repeated, and laughed something sinister. “That’s the problem.”

“It’s not a problem”He said, “You’ll tell them when you’re ready”

“But what if i’m never ready?”Percy asked, “What if I still feel this guilty my entire life? I couldn’t do that to you”

“What are you trying to say?”He asked calmly.

“I don’t know!”Percy exclaimed throwing his hands up. “Find someone better?”  
Jason felt his nostrils flair up with rage as he stomped over and grabbed Percy by the shoulders. The brunet barely had any time to react before a jolt of electricity flooded through his veins. He stared at Jason with wide eyes whose own were narrowed and blindingly bright. It wasn’t enough to hurt of course but it still shocked him enough to slow his rapidly moving thoughts.

“Why did you do that?”Percy asked slowly.

“Because you lost your damn mind”He said cooly.

“I-”

“I don’t want anyone else Percy”He said firmly, “I don’t care how long it takes for you to accept yourself but i’m not leaving you. This-”He gestured between the two “-Is the only time I will say the fates got something right. Juno doesn’t go blessing couples on a whim anymore, this is special-we’re special. I don’t care if we have to love in secret, because loving you is why I’m here”

“You love me?”Percy whispered.

“Did I stutter?”He asked raising a brow, “Now never bring this up again because I'm sure to be embarrassed by it later”

“You said you love me!”Percy said with a cheesy grin. Jason simply ran a hand over his face, he must’ve fried the boys brain too.

“Yes I did..”He said, “Just um...get your stuff, Nico is coming”

“The stoic badass Jason Grace said he loves me!”Percy exclaimed spinning in a circle. “You hear that Jupiter! Your son said he _loves_ me!”

“And the embarrassment is kicking in”He muttered. “Percy come on I-”

“I love you too!”Percy blurted out, “And I'm not just saying that. We’ve been friends for so long and I just...I love you”

Jason wasn’t sure why the simple phrase made his heart twist so, but it did. Sure he’s heard it before, he’s heard it from Piper and friends but hearing those three words fall from Percy’s lips made him feel indestructible. They were going fast, hell they were moving at the speed of light, but with the gods on their side, it had to be right.

-

Up on mount Olympus a similar conversation was being held.

“Are you _sure_ they’re ready for this Juno?”Jupiter grumbled, “I mean Jason is still a boy-”

“ _Jason_ is almost eighteen years old”She corrected, “It’s about time he’s had some happiness in his life”

“But with that boy?”Jupiter almost whined, “You couldn’t have picked a better one?”

“ _I_ didn’t pick anyone dear”Juno said, “That was up to the fates, like most he has three strings. He severed the one with Piper so all that was left was solitude or Percy”

“Solitude isn’t that bad”Jupiter grumbled.

“Oh lighten up”Juno said, “The two are in _love_ ”

“Disgusting”Jupiter said, “Absolutely vile. The boy has no respect, he _mocks_ me!”

“Like everyone else does”Juno laughed.

“I could kill him”Jupiter huffed, “I really could”

“Yes but-”Juno said watching the couple laugh through the clouds, “-you’d have to answer to Jason, if he’d willingly threaten the fates I don’t think he fears you much anymore either”

“The idiot swore on styx”Jupiter grumbling, “Who raised him?”

“Oh stop pouting”Juno said, “He’s growing into a young man”

“Says the one who put him in a godly chastity belt”Jupiter shot back.

“So he wouldn’t impregnate half of California like _someone_ I know”Juno said narrowing her eyes.

“Touche”Jupiter said.

“You have to let go at some point”Juno said, “Once he’s eighteen he’ll be in control of where his fate leads him. Better to let him off the leash a little early so we can correct any mistakes”

“So you’re admitting the Jackson boy is a mistake?”Jupiter said flashing a smile.

“You’re insufferable”Juno said shaking her head. “Absolutely insufferable, you can at least admit he’s good to him. A little confused with himself but his heart is in the right place”

“Fine”Jupiter said, “The fates are never wrong, if this is the way to Jason’s happiness then so be it”

Through the rosy clouds she saw the two link hands with the son of Hades as he pulled them into the shadows, the smiles never leaving their faces.

“And what a wonderful life it will be”

  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Hi guys! I hope you enjoy the fic! This is my first PJO fic and I honestly had a blast writing it and figuring out the characters. Comments and Kudos are appreciated but if you just want to come yell at me directly my tumblr is @ohmyhera.


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